I have struggled to read Edward Said before. His "Orientalism" was completely Greek and Latin to me when I read it the first time in college. I had to read it again some years later to make some sense of it. I intend to read it again shortly.
So, with the same sense of dread I picked up this book two years back. Also because it was a cheap bargain on Mumbai’s streets—Rs 50 for a copy!
To my surprise, Said was completely different this time. A chance one-one-one conversation (if you can call it one ) with a fellow Orkutter prompted me to revisit the book recently. Although this time I didn’t read the entire book but only parts of it.
Said, in a clear-cut manner, rips apart the conventional wisdom with regards to the Israel-Palestinian conflict. In an absolutely unambiguous way he exposes the hypocrisy and malevolent agenda of Israel, evidently backed by big brother, and the hoax called Oslo Peace Accord between the rabid rightwinger Yitzhak Rabin and the Palestinian revolutionary-turned-thug.
Besides, Said also throws light on the attitudinal difference of the US-led West, which thinks Israel is “us” and Palestine is “them”.
A must read for anyone interested in the middle-eastern crisis.
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