This study examines the definition and construction of the East through Western-centered discourses within the framework of Orientalism. While the language, history, sociology, and geography of the East are defined by the West, they are simultaneously othered. In the Eurocentric understanding of Orientalism, the East is portrayed not only as a mystical and exotic geography with a fairy-tale-like character, but also as a place inhabited by barbaric, uneducated people who are unable to represent themselves. While Eastern countries are implicitly othered, they are simultaneously defined from a Western perspective. The concept of othering within the framework of New Orientalism bears similarities to the marginalization of women within patriarchal discourse. In New Orientalism, where the East is defined by the West and this definition is also internalized by the East, the representation of women in spaces such as harems and baths continues to appear in contemporary art. Many artists within feminist art have responded critically to the masculine fantasies of New Orientalism. Through her feminist approaches to body politics, artist Canan critically addresses the exposure of intimacy in her works, while Gülsün Karamustafa focuses on the problems surrounding the representation of women in her series “Reinforcement Series for Oriental Fantasies.”
doi: 10.7816/idil-14-117-12
