How the Victorians fell in love with the Orient

by M

Listen now to a jolly, informational tale of exactly how and why the Victorians fell for the exotic charms of the Orient... and how it affects us today. Those darned Victorians - they do insist on teaching us things!

Orientalism has long been a controversial subject with the Western hemisphere. Examples of Western society stigmatizing Eastern society reach back a thousand years to the Crusades and can be found in each era since. The Victorians were no exception.

The Victorian Empire - on top of the world

The Victorians, as we call them, were the people of the United Kingdom during the rule of Queen Victoria (1837 to 1901). This era cultivated a strict sense of morality (often hypocritically applied) and social code of conduct. We still refer to Victorian morals today. The booming population fueled industrial and economic success. The middle class especially experienced significant growth and, thanks to their material successes, the amount of leisure time the English enjoyed was at an all-time high. Overseas, all was going well for the British colonizers.

In short, the Victorians, confident in their great country and empire, felt on top of the world. Look, mama! No hands!

The Victoriandustrial age of science, travel and machines

Thusly assured in themselves, the Victorians had few qualms about venturing forth in exploration. This was the era of Charles Darwin's voyages and the professionalisation of science. The increase of scientific activity resulted in its spread to the laymen. Conchology, botany, bird-watching and butterfly-and-insect-collecting were popular interests for the growing numbers of amateur scientists (or, as they said, natural historians).

Contact with other cultures, whether through recently invented photography, reading 'Arabian Nights', or seeing gold and silver ornaments from Pakistan at the Great Exhibitation, resulted in a desire to understand the culture. This desire was oftentimes not so much an eagerness to learn about new perspectives and beliefs with an open mind as it was simply an excitement to solve or unravel the mysterious Orient.

This is evident in literature from the Victorian era. In American films one can often pinpoint the decade a film was made from the nationality of the "Bad Guy". German villain - 1940s. Russian villain - 1960s. And so on. It's simply whichever country was currently the "them" versus "us".

For the Victorians, Eastern countries, particularly India, were very much a "them". "Sensational" detective stories often took advantage of the concept of a strange, distant East for, "Crime and its sensational macabre details would be occurrences not any average Victorian would be familiar with, hence its attraction. A respectable banker would read of heroic detectives and psychotic killers, thereby literally othering the 'evil' perpetrator from his own, decent, position. From this perspective, the Victorian detective story thrived on the notion of Orientalism." [Roos Snaeckt]

The East... was the tantalising opposite of the Victorians. Their symbol for 'The Other'...

It is clear that the average Victorian did not receive a comprehensive education in world cultures. Without the ability to understand the diverse and vibrant societies of the Eastern hemisphere, the "East" became a symbol. As Roos Snaeckt's excellent article discusses, there was no need for accuracy when using the East in literature or art. If a concept matched with the symbolic ideas of the East -- strange plants and animals, the 'noble savage' character, sensuality, decadence - then it would be accepted. If something seemed slightly off, well, in 'those strange lands', who knew what might happen? It wasn't at all like England.

That's an important point - that the East ended up being cast as the polar opposite of Victorian England. A Them-versus-Us situation. Edward Said, author of the influential book 'Orientalism', suggests that the concept of the East was generated from neither facts nor reality, but simply the lumping together of all Eastern civilizations as one and casting it as the antithesis to the West. (Said has, however, received criticism for equally stereotyping the West. Still, his book's worth a read.)

... And the myth of the Eastern Woman was at odds with the Victorian Ideal

Whereas the Victorian woman was well mannered, refined and moral, the Eastern woman was opulent, sensual, draped in silks, orgiastic. Whereas an Englishman was courageous, loyal and noble, Eastern men are often depicted as sub-humans or cannibals with simplified or animalistic, sometimes playing the 'sidekick' to an Englishman not unlike faithful dogs. This was a time of English progression, both socially and scientifically, but the Orient was seen as static, in a way, stuck in the past. These ideas were given unfortunate support by the theory of Social Darwinism and evolution. The Englishman was more evolved, smarter, stronger, et cetera compared to the 'degenerate' races.

'Orientalism' today

Orientalism did not die with Queen Victoria, but would gradually fade away over many decades. The pervasiveness of the Oriental prejudice is remarkable, both in its intensity and in longevity. We've identified features of Orientalism in Victorian England, but similar ideas where found in America and Continental Europe. Does it still exist today? Not so much, I feel, but there are two areas where I perceive a sort of evolved form of Orientalism: perceptions of the Middle East and perceptions of Japan.

Case 1: Islamophobia

The 'Islamophobia' that's made headlines in America could quite well be classified as a strain of Orientalism. Misinformation or simply ignorance are major issues in America. The most common, often only, example of Shari'ah law found in the media is Shari'ah law as practiced by the Taliban - an undeniable extremist approach. A survey conducted by non-partisan Pew Research Center found that 40% of polled Americans admitted to having unfavorable views of Islam but only 9% claimed they knew a great deal about Islamic beliefs and practices. We, too, are in danger of replacing societies with symbols.

Case 2: Japanophilia

The second situation that strikes me as Orientalism-esque is the obsession many Americans and Europeans have for Japanese media. I'll admit to having my fangirl moments - and to having perhaps an excess amount of Hello Kitty stickers - and such appreciation and interests is not, in itself, a problem. The problem is the risk of stereotyping Japanese society based on approximately two main images our imported comics and anime give us: Japan as a land of mystic martial arts, ancient knowledge and tea rituals, or Japan as a world full of sexy schoolgirls/boys and adorable everything, plus sushi. It's important to keep in mind that Japan, for all its unique cultural aspects, also has political concerns, economic worries and people like us.

Actually, in all situations, it's important to keep in mind that 'other' people are just like us.

And once again, perhaps in spite of themselves, the Victorians have taught us something...

Sources and Additional Reading

Islam and Islamophobia, The International Socialist Review March/April 2007

It's a Mongoose! Imperialism and Orientalism in Victorian Detective Fiction Roos Snaeckt - March 2010

Islam as News Ahmed Afzaal - October 2010

Cool Cuisine: The Marketing and Perception of Japanese Food in the West Katie Johannes - March 2010

Nature and the Victorian Imagination - U. C. Knoepflmacher, G. B. Tennyson - 1977

Orientalism - Edward Said - 1978

And of course, our dear Wikipedia. :)

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