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dee9401's review
1.0
My opinion of this book, after only 20 pages, was that it was horrible. Having completed it, that initial opinion is wholly confirmed.
The author is imperialistic and definitely has a colonial outlook, especially as it regards Western Sahara. He fails to ever look at himself or his own Western culture, never turning his microscope onto his own preconceptions, sympathies and nationalism. He never questions how symbols are used by the guerillas and their followers, nor does he ever look outside these communities in order to see how they fit in, navigate and struggle against the larger context.
He describes the people who are guerillas as almost without the ability to think for themselves. If they are supporters, they are portrayed as either megalomaniacal leaders or manipulated puppets. He tries to correctly point out some techniques that are ideological indoctrination, but his overall approach is to diminish or eliminate the humanity and agency of the population.
Further, he writes fluid and beautiful prose to describe the landscape, how the sand dunes meet the sky, the sun, etc. But when describing people, especially the common bystander, he dredges up racist and condescending language. I feel like he's describing his day at the zoo, only the exhibits are filled with human beings and the author can't see that, only a sensationalized story to tell his friends the next day at the water cooler.
He guesses at people's opinions, rather than asking them what they're thinking. He rarely uses quotes from his informants. Granted, the author does not bill this as an ethnographic piece. But he, and his reviewers, call it reporting. That's true, only in the vein of scandal sheets and racist propaganda posters. He does a disservice to those he writes about and to all reporters.
Words like condescension, arrogance, and colonialism ring through my head as I read this book. A famed writer with the New Yorker, I'd expect fine writing, deep research, wit and, indeed, a little arrogance. Sadly, all I found was the last, and in much greater quantity than I ever expected. Jon Lee Anderson needs to take a refresher course in journalism and he should consider a few cultural anthropology courses to boot.
The author is imperialistic and definitely has a colonial outlook, especially as it regards Western Sahara. He fails to ever look at himself or his own Western culture, never turning his microscope onto his own preconceptions, sympathies and nationalism. He never questions how symbols are used by the guerillas and their followers, nor does he ever look outside these communities in order to see how they fit in, navigate and struggle against the larger context.
He describes the people who are guerillas as almost without the ability to think for themselves. If they are supporters, they are portrayed as either megalomaniacal leaders or manipulated puppets. He tries to correctly point out some techniques that are ideological indoctrination, but his overall approach is to diminish or eliminate the humanity and agency of the population.
Further, he writes fluid and beautiful prose to describe the landscape, how the sand dunes meet the sky, the sun, etc. But when describing people, especially the common bystander, he dredges up racist and condescending language. I feel like he's describing his day at the zoo, only the exhibits are filled with human beings and the author can't see that, only a sensationalized story to tell his friends the next day at the water cooler.
He guesses at people's opinions, rather than asking them what they're thinking. He rarely uses quotes from his informants. Granted, the author does not bill this as an ethnographic piece. But he, and his reviewers, call it reporting. That's true, only in the vein of scandal sheets and racist propaganda posters. He does a disservice to those he writes about and to all reporters.
Words like condescension, arrogance, and colonialism ring through my head as I read this book. A famed writer with the New Yorker, I'd expect fine writing, deep research, wit and, indeed, a little arrogance. Sadly, all I found was the last, and in much greater quantity than I ever expected. Jon Lee Anderson needs to take a refresher course in journalism and he should consider a few cultural anthropology courses to boot.
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