Electronic Orientalism? the afterlife of Syed Hussein Alatas’ The Myth of the Lazy Native in online databases

Abstract

This article examines how in the discourse on Orientalism, electronic databases from Western academia represent voices from formerly colonized countries. In a case study, the afterlife of one of the classics of Orientalism studies, The Myth of the Lazy Native (1977) by the Malaysian Syed Hussein Alatas, in online databases, particularly JSTOR, is examined. It is found that almost all authors of the included articles are educated in or affiliated with Western academia. This does not automatically result in a rejection of his critical views on Western Orientalism. A close reading reveals that only the early reviews (1977—82) tend to view The Myth of the Lazy Native critically. From 1983 onwards, almost all represented articles refer to the Myth as an authoritative work, with relevance for various fields of study in different periods. However, due to the biased coverage of the online databases, voices from outside the Anglo-American academia remain unheard, which is particularly problematic in the discourse on Western Orientalism.

Decolonising Criminology: Syed Hussein Alatas on Crimes of the Powerful

“…In fact, there are numerous scholars who have contributed meaningful knowledge throughout the centuries who have been neglected, ignored or forgotten, especially those from the non-West. One would think that someone who has been described as 'one of the founders of sociological investigation in Southeast Asia' (Abaza 2005: 237) would be well-known, but regrettably, Syed Hussein Alatas is still under appreciated in the dominant centres of knowledge production (Graf 2010;Maia 2014). Alatas was of Arab heritage but was born and raised in Indonesia, completed his doctorate in the Netherlands, and subsequently resided within Singapore and Malaysia.…”

“…This precarious and competitive environment is not conducive to overhauling syllabi, exploring new literatures, radical theoretical innovation or epistemological exploration beyond the ordinary and is one of the main reasons why contemporary criminology has been described as 'theoretically light' (Matthews 2017: 579). Sixthly, structural inequalities such as racism and xenophobia remain in universities, scholarly organisations, academic meetings and the publishing industry which leads to the marginalisation and exclusion of non-Western scholars (Belknap 2016: 262;Graf 2010;Kidman and Chu 2017;Medina 2011;Sinha 2005: 200-209). Westerncentrism will thus persist until the gatekeepers that define the field are ready to acknowledge the issue and take practical steps to address it.…”

Pengajian Malaysia Dan Penerimaan Bahasa Melayu Di Peringkat Antarabangsa Dalam Era “Wawasan Global”

“…Bandingkan sumbangan Syed Hussein Alatas dalam wacana yang berkaitan, khususnya bukunya The Myth of the Lazy Native (1977) dan persepsinya di Pengajian Asia Tenggara dan Pengajian Pasca-Kolonial antarabangsa(Graf 2010a). …”