The Orient in Us. The Debate about the Nature of Europe from the Vantage Point of Narrative Research on the Islamic Orient

Abstract

Due to centuries of selective perception, the Oriental constituents of Westem cultures in popular consciousness have mostly been relegated to oblivion. Given this situation and considering the psychological importance to define the Self by marking it off from the Other, it has become possible today to perceive the sibling cultures of the Islamic Orient as alien or even hostile. Against the backdrop of comparative folk narrative research concerned with the Orient, the present essay illustrates the contribution of Oriental collections and elements to the formation of European narrative tradition, and also addresses the related processes of adaptation. The everyday nature and ubiquity of the data under consideration hold a potential that may contribute to the current debates in Europe about interaction and integration.