The Politics of Dispossession: The Struggle for Palestinian Self-Determination, 1969-1994

If there is any cause in this whole wide world where the obvious, glaring injustice of it all has been summarily ignored and dismissed by most of the world's leading intellectuals, it is the cause of the Palestinian freedom movement. Said's (pronounced Sayid)--a Palestinian Arab of Christian descent--was that rare voice which informed the world of the Zionist duplicity, in a way that laid bare the untold sufferings of over 4 million of its inhabitants in the most lucid manner possible. For over three decades, Said's was a lone cry in the New Yorkian wilderness, which drew attention to the State of Israel's Ocean liner of lies ever since (and even before) it came into existence. Said's pain and melancholy comes through, etched in every page of this book and makes for frightful reading. Given the supposed openness of the media in democratic nation-states, it's shocking how through over 5 decades, the combined might of Zionism's religious fanaticism, the traditional incompetence of ruling monarchies in the Arab world, the West's moral ambivalence to call the Israeli spade a bloody shovel and the Zionist lobby in Washington have been able to keep an entire nation of millions in a sort of permanent exile. This book neatly divided in 3 parts critiques everything that is wrong and tragic about the Palestinian movement with merciless felicity and attention to detail that a proper understanding of this cause deserves. Of course, he is severe (and justifiably so) on Israel, but it is his attacks on the rest of the Arab world and the dishonest intellectuals of the western world that makes for fascinating reading. Truly, an intellectual like Said, rarely ever loses his relevance or goes out of fashion. This book is a priceless gem, to be read and re-read by anyone who wants to move beyond standard middle-east explanations, terrorism clichés and the rhetoric of "with us or against us".

If all could read this book, it might help meople to understand what is happening to the people of Palestine.

It is remarkable how relevant these essays seem still, even as they lead up to the era of the Oslo process, in the frozen present since 1967, or 1948. Sorting out the myths of the Arab-Israeli conflict can be a full-time job, and that's the problem. Said's witnessing of the issues since 1967 has always been one component of the unfolding tragedy. The Arab-Israeli conflict sometimes seems in a time warp, and the relevance of these essays endures, whatever one's perspective. Said's acerbic commentary seems to hover over the decades, and his personal account, to start the book, is a permanent record of those who endured the juggernaut.

Edward Said's writings pertaining to Palestinian and Near Eastern affairs are always well-written, deeply insightful, and immensely compelling. This collection of writings, primarily dealing with the emergence of a Palestinian self-consciousness, was authored of the course of nearly thirty years. Not only does it provide a uniquely valuable historical catalogue of Said's thoughts upon Palestinian issues, it traces well the Palestinian self-view. Edward Said is, to my mind, one of the most truly complete thinkers alive today...his thoughts, be they upon literary criticism, culturalism, politics, or ethnography, scintillate...this collection is no different. For those wanting a, albeit ocassionally caustic, tracing of the Palestinian self-view and world-view of them, this stands as a superior resource.

Edward Said is a Professor at Columbia University. He is a public voice for the struggle of Palestinian determination which has seemed unviable for so many years. If you know nothing of the Israeli/Palestinian struggle, read this book. Prof. Said was one of the many Palestinians expelled from the area in 1947. He was educated in the U.S. and speaks from an ex-patriate point of view. His involvement in the politics for Palestinian rights is incredible, unmatched, and deserves admiration. His book reveals a side never told in the American media. He has a clear sense of what problems do exist, and provides numerouse examples, parallel scholarly sources (i.e.Chomsky), and facts. Prof. Said has also written several other books about this and other subjects pertaining to Orientalism, Musicology, and Literary Criticism some of which include: "Culture of Imerialism","Orientalism","Covering Islam", and "After the Last Sky".