From the 'Terror of the World' to the 'Sick Man of Europe'

From the «Terror of the World» to the «Sick Man of Europe» sheds new light on the hotly debated issue of Orientalism by looking at the European images of the Ottoman Empire and society over three centuries. Through a careful examination of the European intellectual discourse, this book claims that there was no coherent and constant Europewide vision of the Turks until the eighteenth century and clearly demonstrates that the Age of Reason has not rendered reasonable images of the Turks. Indeed, once inspiring awe, the European opinion of Ottomans was held in contempt during this period.

Autorentext

The Author: Aslı Çırakman is Assistant Professor of Political Science at Bilkent University in Ankara, Turkey. She received her Ph.D. in political studies from Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario. She has written articles on the history of political ideas both in Turkish and English.

Klappentext

From the «Terror of the World» to the «Sick Man of Europe» sheds new light on the hotly debated issue of Orientalism by looking at the European images of the Ottoman Empire and society over three centuries. Through a careful examination of the European intellectual discourse, this book claims that there was no coherent and constant Europewide vision of the Turks until the eighteenth century and clearly demonstrates that the Age of Reason has not rendered reasonable images of the Turks. Indeed, once inspiring awe, the European opinion of Ottomans was held in contempt during this period.

Zusammenfassung
"It has been a well-known fact that since the Renaissance the European world had been intensely investigating the eastern countries. These early modern accounts on the East embody crucial historical material. Moreover, these perceptions on the East are also significant in so far as they reflect the formation of European self-understanding. This excellent book examines these sources in such a way as to reveal and interpret the distinctive features of western thought." (Ilber Ortayli, Galatasaray University, Istanbul)