Orientalism in G.R.R Martin’s a Song of Ice and Fire Deanery’s the White Savior

Ghita Mesbah

Vol-5,Issue-3,May - June 2020

Author: Ghita Mesbah

Keywords: The theory of Orientalism, The Eastern world, The Western world, The Orient "other", The improvisation of power.

Abstract: Identities, cultural differences, feminism, women in power, racism and so on have always been a controversial concept in most contemporary works. Starting with The Arabian Nights, modern fantasy has lately followed the same pattern of depicting the Oriental "Other". The cultural differences between the East and the West have been theorized by many scholars and critics in numerous works of literary modern studies, with reference to Edward Said’s book,, Orientalism. Said debates that Orientalism is the collateral damage of colonialism, by dominating the East economically, politically and culturally. This collateral damage still exists nowadays; where the patterns of superiority between the West and the East are to be considered. As it is some kind of everlasting unconscious domination, there is no way to dispose of its effects. The West plays the savior's role for the colonized communities; as they are considered helpless and waiting for the support of the West, while facing racial prejudice and religious discrimination The reasons why I have chosen this topic are the exotic representation of the characters' traits and the political and social structures in the series. This is compelling because the world of A Song of Ice and Fire is a secondary one, where reality should be less featured. I argue that this subgenre does not belong to the world of enchantment and magic. Furthermore, the existence of Orientalism within the framework of this subgenre makes the novel series worth examining in this context. The representation of the text makes the texture of fantasy arguable, as the writer still use the same familiar methods to formulate a modern fantasy.

DOI: 10.22161/ijels.53.22