Date of Award

1-1-1997

Document Type

Thesis

Publisher

Edith Cowan University

Degree Name

Master of Arts

School

School of Language, Literature and Media Studies

Faculty

Faculty of Education and Arts

First Supervisor

Dr Brian Shoesmith

Abstract

Since the late eighteenth century, the Western observation of the East has been based on shared ontological and epistemological assumptions made by the West of the East as different and as the "Other''. Said's concept of Orientalism revolutionized Western understanding of non-Western cultures by showing how Western projected images shaped the Occidental view of the Orient. Although much has been written about the West's perception of the East as "Other'' (Eg. Said and Schirato), to date, little has been written dealing with the West from, the "Eastern" viewpoint. This thesis will examine the concepts of Orientalism (the perception of the Orient as Other) and Occidentalism, which Yao views as Orientalism in reverse, and apply it to the study of Australian I Singapore relations. It will specifically look at the way in which Australia is reported in Singapore's main English newspaper, The Straits Times. Australian events are perceived to be of importance not only to the Singaporean reader but to Australian/Singapore relations. Although the notion of the "Other" can mean different things to different people., I have chosen, for the purpose of this thesis to use Said's definition, which has to do with Western perception of the East as Other. The principle question that arises from the situation of Othering is, quite simply, why does The Straits Times, and by implication the Singapore government, choose to "Other" Australia in a remarkably consistent manner?

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