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Anglo‐Muslim relations in 18th‐century literature and culture
Author(s) -
Cahill Samara Anne
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
literature compass
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.158
H-Index - 4
ISSN - 1741-4113
DOI - 10.1111/lic3.12601
Subject(s) - geopolitics , islam , toleration , politics , monotheism , power (physics) , state (computer science) , perspective (graphical) , empire , repertoire , sociology , law , literature , history , aesthetics , political science , philosophy , art , visual arts , computer science , physics , archaeology , algorithm , quantum mechanics
An analytical toolkit particular to English constructions of the Ottomans is needed to grapple with representations of Anglo‐Muslim relations in the 18th century. That toolkit is a work in progress, but would include recognition of the following: (1) the current state of archival access reinforces a Eurocentric perspective; (2) the relative geopolitical power of England and the Ottoman Empire shifted drastically in the 18th century; (3) the necessity of a strategic post‐Saidian theoretical framework; (4) a polemical repertoire of comparison and projection (“Mahometanism”) often used stereotypically imagined Muslims as stand‐ins for non‐Muslim targets; (5) the politics of confessionalization meant that Islam's non‐Trinitarian monotheism was a challenge to Anglican authority; and (6) polemical uses of Islam particularly focused on issues of political authority, religious toleration, and women's rights.