Said (1978): Introduction

In the introduction to “Orientalism,” Edward Said states that the term orientalism is not
preferred nowadays as it suggests the attitude of 19th century and early 20th century European
colonialism. Said begins with the assumption that the Orient is not an inert fact of nature, neither
is the Occident. He also states that it is inaccurate to say that the Orient is a creation with no real
base to it. Orientalism uses the strategy of flexible positional superiority in which the
Westerner’s relationship to the Orient varies but the West is always the superior one. In addition,
Orientalism is not only a political matter, but it is apparent in culture and social institutions.

Mamdani (2002): “Good Muslim, Bad Muslim: A Political Perspective on Culture and
Terrorism”
Following the attacks on September 11, 2001, the media blew up about Islam. As a result,
islam and terrorism became intertwined as violence was presumed to be an essential
characteristic of the religion. According to Mamdani, there is an increasing dichotomy in
Western vs Muslim majority countries. This idea presumes that in the modern world, culture is
about creativity, and in the premodern world, culture is an instinctive and inscribed activity.
Despite this claim that premodern societies do not have a creative capacity, they are said to have
a destructive capacity. The CIA and the Pentagon referred to terrorism as low intensity conflict,
though the target was civilian life, including destroying infrastructure, health centers, schools,
and fields. The U.S. attempted to use Islamic countries such as Afghanistan to fight against the
Soviet Union, but this caused backlash as it was the way that Osama bin Laden created al-Qaeda.
The U.S.’s training and sponsoring of certain groups in the Middle East resulted in embrace of
war, terror tactics, and the use of fighters across borders.

Wallace (1956): “Revitalization Movements: Some Theoretical Considerations for their

Comparative Study”
Anthony Wallace proposes the term revitalization for the many major cultural system
changes that occur through a relatively uniform process. Wallace defines revitalization as a
“deliberate, organized, conscious effor by members of society to construct a more satisfying
culture” (265). This means that the people that participate in this culture must not be satisfied
with their cultural system. Cultures also change naturally without purposeful intent of the
society, such as through diffusion, drift, and historical change. Wallace states that the parts that
make up an individual and a society differ in that an individual's parts are relatively unchanging
while a society’s parts are interchangeable. Revitalization movements are constantly occurring
features in history. The revitalization process contains a five step structure: 1. Steady state 2.
Period of individual stress 3. Period of cultural distortion 4. Period of revitalization 5. New
steady state. The new state achieved after revitalization is likely to be different in traits,
organization, and patterns.

Nagata (2001): “Beyond Theology: Toward an Anthropology of ‘Fundamentalism’”

The term fundamentalism varies in definition and use in many contexts, as it has been
reincarnated several times. After the Enlightenment, the job of explaining fundamentals shifted
from religion to science, as religion was supposed to be separated from the rest of life. The idea
of fundamentalism has spread to faiths other than Christianity, emphasizing a strong adherence
to the literal text. Some faiths have historically had many debates and commentaries over
interpretations. Though fundamentalism is not the precise term to be used for Islam, it is often
used as a result of a lack of a better term in English. The focus on fundamentalism has shifted
from its textual meanings to how it is associated with terrorism and violence, mostly in Islam.
Muslims have been labeled as fundamentalists following some events such as the bombings on
U.S. buildings in the 1990s. There is an assumption that fundamentalism is religion based, but it
can exceed religion to be sighted in extreme nationalism as well.

Beeman (2002): “Fighting the Good Fight: Fundamentalism and Religious Revival”
Fundamentalism is used as a term for revivalist conservative religious orthodoxy. It was
originally meant for Christianity, but it extends to other religions as well. The four qualities of
fundamentalism are revivalism, orthodoxy, evangelism, and social action. Revivalism includes
the theories of cultural change in a society. Fundamentalist movements often impose changes on
other societies, viewing themselves as saviors. Orthodoxies include views with certain
assumptions about how the world works, as they usually reflect the history of the religion that
the fundamentalists represent. Evangelistic efforts are often spread with televangelists, who are
television preachers that spread the contemporary fundamentalist ideas. Social action is an
essential part of fundamentalism as it is often a regular behavior of fundamentalists. Sometimes
the actions of fundamentalists begin to resemble those of political activists.