Occidentalism: The West in the eyes of the East Essays

Life in the Western U.S changed drastically during the second half of the 19th century from 1830-1890 since certain laws, including the Homestead Act and the Pacific Railway Act were enforced causing new doors to open. When the people moved to the west, the Union Pacific and Central Pacific came together and “In time, a network of railroads would bring new settlers, encourage construction of towns and cities, and allow mail and supplies to be shipped clear across the country” (343). With enough help the west was changed into an area with a lot easier transportation system which made every single daily life task simpler. Prior to the building of railroads, there were only wagons which took a long amount of time to travel in especially with a big load. After so many people came into this area,

These early settlers had a major influence on the joining of these two cultures. Settlers started to inhabit and populate along the east coast and moving north and south. They began organising into colonies and called themselves colonist. Colonist enjoyed freedoms and opportunities that they never had. Owning land was never possible in the colonist previous civilization. Colonist were also free to decide how they wanted to make a living unlike the peasant life that many of them had known before. One of the biggest reasons the colonist were so enthusiastic because they got to worship how they wanted. They were finally able to practice and believe in God to their best understanding. For centuries very few people have had this right, to worship as they desire. One can see why the colonist lived with so much passion and pride in this new life style.

Since its inhabitance, competition and dominance has been a concept that remains prevalent throughout American life. Past ideologies such as Manifest Destiny, Cultural Imperialism, and Ethnocentrism are all practices and beliefs comprising what it means to be American for many citizens, while also continually shaping outside perception of Americans today. On one hand, many countries have and continue to fully embrace American culture, globalization, and the rise of capitalism. In contrast, many countries have and continue to reject America’s stride for world assimilation regarding their ideals and values.

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Many assumptions have been made about what the ‘West’ was really like, mostly suggesting that it was some amazing time period when guys might save a damsel in distress. “Don’t you think we spend too much time mythologizing the west? I mean look at how it was. Dirty, violent, & illiterate. It wasn’t an age for heroes, that’s for sure.” (Alexie 224) This quote explains exactly how people who were alive then might have described that time period. It refers to the stereotyping of the west, and how some people glorified it as a land of heroes, but it was not. Sherman Alexie highlighted all the stereotypes, made it clear who brought them about, and discussed how the Natives were represented in the eyes of the white man. The whites believed that the

The West prior to and after the Civil War was largely unpopulated by the white man, the Indians, as a result, dominated the landscape mostly undisturbed. However, this separation came to a halt as legion of white pioneers invaded the great plains, displacing the Indians and “civilizing” the West. With tensions rising, the government attempted to make treaties that gave the Indians designated areas to live. What the government failed to realize was that there wasn’t a primary Indian hierarchy and that the people in charge of upholding these treaters were corrupt. Inability to control the nomadic people and growing anger amongst the Indian ranks lead to many bloody skirmishes between the Indians and the U.S. Army. The Indian’s had a short lived victory at the Battle of Little Big Horn, “Custer’s Last Stand.” Eventually, the U.S. Army forced the Indians to surrender and corralled them into reservations where they silently suffered for generations as the government attempted to assimilate them.

The expansion to the west was considered to be a dead topic in the world of history. However one historian published a novel bringing forward new thoughts and opinions on the subject. Since Turners thesis, published in 1893 not many historians tried to reevaluate the topic of the frontier until Gregory H. Noble. Noble currently a history professor at Georgia Tech University is a very accomplished historian in early American and environmental history. In his novel, American Frontiers: Cultural Encounters and Continental Conquest he embarks on evaluating the expansion of the west in a completely revolutionized approach. Noble was able to revitalize the subject of westward expansion through a non-Turnerian approach, which was looking at the frontier as a variety of multicultural encounters. This was entirely different compared to Turner who viewed the west as a merger between savagery and civilization. Noble appreciates and takes into consideration the encounters with women, children, Hispanics, and Native Americans. However, Noble realizes that the settlement of the west “must be understood as a story of often savage and duplicitous conquest rather than benign settlement.” This benign settlement was settled in a savage way but yet the United States government was unable to self-reflect and realize the true savages are themselves. Noble’s was one of the first historians to mention and defend the Native Americans as people not as undesirables. Although Nobles novel was

Culture War: The Myth Of A Polarized America by Fiorina is a book which examines the nature of Americans, on many levels. The main thesis proposed is this atmosphere of conflict and animosity between Americans is nil and only put forward by the political class and dishonest reporters. The issues raised throughout the book pick apart this myth and its many reasonings through facts, data and tracking of the American attitude throughout many eras. The central idea Fiorina holds and present is valid view, which I believe to hold much more merit than this assumed atmosphere of deep division among Americans.

The US's interference in the Middle East was seen by many Americans as a charitable endeavor, with the US as a benevolent nation willing to swoop in and save the Middle East from itself. However, many Middle-Easterners didn't agree with this view, especially as Westernization was often a prerequisite for acceptance by US citizens, both within and outside of US borders. History had already taught us this lesson – in the Filipino revolt against the US troops who attempted to occupy their country and save them by shaping and imposing a government upon them. The quote 'resentment against American policy was still evident a century later' (Judis) goes to show how interference in other country's government processes could understandably breed pervasive anger within a country for years after. However, this anger sometimes appeared unjustified and arrogant to Americans who were far removed from the situation. The result of a nation rejecting what many American citizens saw as a selfless offer of help was often discrimination and

During the late 1600s and the to the mid-1700s, countries fought for land and power in order to have global domination. While several countries fought for the same cause, resolving their diffrerences was nearly impossible, and this often led to more wars and conflicts. One of the many conflicts concerned the domination of North America. While many European powers competed for control of North America, Britain gained the most territory through the four French and Indian wars, King William's War, Queen Anne's War, King George's War, and the French and Indian War. As these wars progressed, Britain achieved the most success and eventually became the most dominant power in North America.

The Navajo Indians emulated the pueblo. The shed their animal skin clothing for cotton and learned quickly how to farm. These people settled in between the Rio Grande and the Grand Canyon. They herded sheep and grew corn in the valleys. They were a peaceful group of people, and were one with their surroundings.

The media has established and reinforced attitudes which correspond to these ethnocentric discourses, as can be seen in the examples given throughout this essay. With instances occurring since its conception, the United States has often thought of itself as more powerful, more economically sound, and ultimately "better" than other nations. This has been shown by the country 's tendency to immerse in situations occurring in other nations, such as the country 's current involvement with affairs in the Middle East. It has been claimed that if all terrorists are not Arabs or Muslims, that most terrorists are Arabs or Muslims. Is this true or another myth?

In Samuel P. Huntington’s article “The West: Unique, Not Universal,” he addresses his audience with a very controversial question: Is Western Culture universal or unique? Huntington elaborately opens up this question with research and examples to explain and persuade readers that the West will never be a universal culture for all, but rather a unique culture that will be accepted by those who appreciate it. For decades now, historians and scholars have debated with one another to determine who is right and wrong. However, from a handful of articles from different scholars, Samuel Huntington’s statement that the West is unique rather than universal is supported and even further elaborated on by these particular sources. A common understanding between all the sources, that must be noted, is that a civilization’s culture is not comprised of material goods but rather their culmination of their religion(s), values, language(s) and traditions. While although there are scholars out their that negate the West is unique, a large amount of scholars still argue and strengthen Huntington’s argument that the West has unique and exclusive characteristics that make them distinctive and rare.

Samuel Huntington sees an emerging world organized on the basis of "civilizations". Societies that share cultural affinities cooperate with each other and the efforts to force a society into another civilization will fail; countries gather around the leading States of their civilization. This description of the process of new structures of international relations that Huntington sees developing, leads him to consider that the greatest risks of violence and confrontation lie in the Westerns’ claims to universality, which are leading them to increasingly get into conflict with other civilizations, particularly Islam and China; local conflicts, especially between Muslims and non-Muslims, generate new alliances and lead to an escalation of violence, which will usually lead the dominant states to make an attempt to stop them.

I have often wondered about the early days of Jesus, what he did before he met John the Baptist, got baptized, and started his new life. Many people believe he went for a long walk, a journey to the East, like the one described by Hermann Hesse in the novel with that title, A Journey To The East, which goes to the same place as the Chinese story called Journey To The West. Some says Jesus went to India and some say he went to Tibet.