American Orientalism

by Little, Douglas

• ISBN13: 9780807855393
• ISBN10: 0807855391
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2004-02-01
• Publisher: Univ of North Carolina Pr

Summary

Douglas Little exposes the persistence of "orientalist" stereotypes in American popular culture and examines United States policy toward the Middle East from many angles. Chapters focus on America's increasing dependence on petroleum; U.S.-Israeli relations; the rise of revolutionary nationalist movements in Egypt, Iran, Iraq, and Libya; the futility of U.S. military and covert intervention; and the unsuccessful attempt to broker a "peace-for-land" settlement between the Israelis and the Palestinians. A new epilogue addresses the recent U.S. war in Iraq. Little offers valuable historical context for anyone seeking a better understanding of the complicated relationship between the U.S. and the Middle East.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	ix
Abbreviations	xiii
INTRODUCTION Gideons Band in the Holy Land: We're Not in Kansas Anymore	1	(8)
CHAPTER ONE Orientalism, American Style: The Middle East in the Mind of America	9	(34)
CHAPTER TWO Opening the Door: Business, Diplomacy, and America's Stake in Middle East Oil	43	(34)
CHAPTER THREE The Making of a Special Relationship: America and Israel	77	(40)
CHAPTER FOUR A Tale of Four Doctrines: U.S. National Security, the Soviet Threat, and the Middle East	117	(40)
CHAPTER FIVE Sympathy for the Devil?: America, Nasser, and Arab Revolutionary Nationalism	157	(36)
CHAPTER SIX Modernizing the Middle East: From Reform to Revolution in Iraq, Libya, and Iran	193	(36)
CHAPTER SEVEN Kicking the Vietnam Syndrome: Waging Limited War from the Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf	229	(38)
CHAPTER EIGHT Opportunities Lost and Found: The United States and the Arab-Israeli Peace Process	267	(40)
CONCLUSION Fool's Errand or Kodak Moment?: America and the Middle East at the Dawn of the Twenty-first Century	307	(12)
EPILOGUE Not Your Father's Persian Gulf War: The Bush Doctrine, Iraq, and Islam	319	(10)
Notes	329	(48)
Bibliography	377	(24)
Index	401