CASAW Annual Lecture | Prof Rashid Khalidi “The 20th Century from a Middle Eastern Perspective”
23-24 October 2009
hosted by CASAW, University of Manchester
Day 1 – Friday 23 October
Professor Rashid Khalidi (Columbia University) “The 20th Century from a Middle Eastern Perspective”
Time: 5 – 6.30 pm
Venue: Samuel Alexander Lecture Theatre
Lecture Abstract:
We almost invariably look at the history of the 20th century from the perspective of Europe or the United States. It is easy to understand why this might be the case. The 20th century was seen by some as “America’s century,” an appellation that reflected the global predominance achieved by the United States from World War II onwards. And the 20th century’s middle decades in fact did witness the last moment when Europe was the center of world affairs. But this approach means that the history of the entire world is seen from a particular “metropolitan” point of view, one that foreshortens everything apprehended at a distance. Moreover, such a perspective privileges the impact of Europe and the United States on the rest of the world, while slighting the possibility that events and trends originating elsewhere may have been equally crucial to determining global outcomes. While not trying to replace the United States or Europe with the Middle East as the center of the events of the 20th century, this talk will attempt to de-center our understanding of 20th century history, and suggest ways in which it appears differently from the perspective of a “non-metropolitan” region, in what particular ways the Middle East may have affected the past century, and how this century affected the Middle East.
Day 2 – Saturday 24 October
11am – 1pm
Boardroom, Arthur Lewis 2.016/017
Round-table discussion. Speakers to include: Rashid Khalidi, Eugene Rogan, Moshe Behar, John Chalcraft
