Book Description
Reel Bad Arabs: How Hollywood Vilifies a People is a groundbreaking book that dissects a slanderous history dating from cinema's earliest days to contemporary Hollywood blockbusters that feature machine-gun wielding and bomb-blowing "evil" Arabs.
Award-winning film authority Jack G. Shaheen, noting that only Native Americans have been more relentlessly smeared on the silver screen, painstakingly makes his case that "Arab" has remained Hollywood's shameless shorthand for "bad guy," long after the movie industry has shifted its portrayal of other minority groups. In this comprehensive study of nearly one thousand films, arranged alphabetically in such chapters as "Villains," "Sheikhs," "Cameos," and "Cliffhangers," Shaheen documents the tendency to portray Muslim Arabs as Public Enemy #1-brutal, heartless, uncivilized Others bent on terrorizing civilized Westerners.
Shaheen examines how and why such a stereotype has grown and spread in the film industry and what may be done to change Hollywood's defamation of Arabs.
Customer Reviews:
A MUST HAVE! .......2007-07-22
I knew once I bought this book it would change my life, and it did. When a person learns to read she or he can never look at letters in the same way again. In the same way, once a person is exposed to this book and the critical lens that it offers through which to view, he or she will not be able to consume U.S. popular culture in the same way ever again.
Dr. Jack G. Shaheen, a pioneer in media and Arab American studies, unpacks and analyzes the representation of Arabs in U.S. and Western popular culture films. In the introduction he summarizes the "five basic Arab types--Villains, Sheikhs, Maidens, Egyptians, and Palestinians" that "pop up in a hodgepodge of melodrama and mayhem," and challenges the viewer to "pay special attention to those Arabs you do not see on movie screens...ordinary Arab men, women and children, living ordinary lives."
The vast majority of the book functions as a reference, reviewing films alphabetically from A-Z, and outlining specific examples of how films fall into Hollywood's trap of stereotyping, in which Arab characters wear an "Orientalist face" and perform according to the West's fears and fantasies. Some have suggested that in a post-9/11 world, the stereotypes and negative media coverage of Arabs has gotten worse, and this is arguably true. However, Shaheen points out that the smearing campaign against Arabs and Semites is nothing new, as seen in films outlined from throughout the 20th century.
This is a must-have read for college students in media and ethnic studies and for anyone who wants to understand media representations, stereotypes, and "how Hollywood vilifies a people."
A great complement to this book is the newly released documentary of the same title produced by The Media Education Foundation. Dr. Shaheen communicates the gist of the book, while specific examples are seen on screen. An excellent 50-minute teaching tool, and an eye opener for any audience.
Reel Good!.......2007-07-22
Reel Good!
Arabs have been negatively misinterpreted in the American popular media. Dr. Jack Shaheen has documented over 900 motion pictures since 1893 that portray Arabs in an offensive way. Some may say that this is pure entertainment. But is it?
In Reel Bad Arabs, Dr. Shaheen shows us how we, the West, have come to depict "Arabs" as different from us. We view the typical Arab male as a "terrorist" and the typical Arab woman as oppressed, covered and subordinate to the male. What may seem as fiction in the American popular media is now becoming reality to viewers.
We often see images of Arabs with machine guns on screen and this unfortunately generates stereotypes and hatred in the minds of the public. When we experience this reality, we do not question what an Arab is.
Dr. Shaheen's message is clear. The understanding and acknowledgment of the other culture is very important. I agree. These ongoing stereotypes and incidents that have been occurring should be an open opportunity for us to learn more about Arabs and who they are in order to avoid such confusion.
-Rima Abdelkader
An accessable survey of Arabs on the big screen.......2007-07-19
I have spent a number of years researching various relationships between people and governments in the Middle East and North America. Dr. Shaheen's academic articles have always been an important resource in this pursuit, especially on the topic of Arabs in the popular "Western" imagination. However, this book brings his life's work to a much broader public audience. Like Edward Said, he poignantly describes a fictitious and twisted world wherein Muslims and Arabs are cast into a mold that does little to explain the reality of their existence in America or abroad. Unlike Said, this book is a little more accessible to read and the main points are well summarized in the introduction. The remainder of the book extensively catalogs just about every film made by Hollywood which uses Arab and/or Muslim stereotypes. The book could be a great reference for anyone with an interest in movie stereotypes of minorities. However, if you really want to get the gist of his point in an even easier format, than I would recommend his film/documentary of the same title. It seems Dr. Shaheen has taken a lesson from Hollywood that people easily learn through the power of motion pictures.
Eye-opening book.......2007-07-19
Dr. Shaheen's book in an eye-opener when it comes to exploration of the vilification of Arabs in Hollywood films, however it is a must read for all Americans. What's shocking is the consistency by which Hollywood has depicted Arabs as evil or backwards since the inception of film, and all of this prior to the events of 9/11. In example after example, Dr. Shaheen shows how Arabs are constantly depicted as terrorists, stupid, greedy, megalomaniacs, misogynists, backwards or just plain evil. Equally disturbing is the dearth of any positive Arab characters in films such as fathers, mothers, doctors or heros.
Dr. Shaheen doesn't make the argument that all portrayals of Arabs should be positive, just that there need be a balance. Like it or not, Hollywood's films contribute to perceptions throughout the world. Aside from the barrage on the self-esteem of young Arab-Americans, stereotypical portrayals such as this are dangerous as they justify violence and civil rights violations that will eventually affect all Americans.
To think this book only affects Arabs and Arab-Americans would be a mistake. Once civil liberties are violated for one group, others will follow. I highly recommend it.
Interesting publish date.......2007-07-07
The book is released in Jul, 2001. 2 months later Arabs comit the most notorious single act of terrorism in history... 9/11. I'm not saying Hollywood has done anything good to break stereotypes... but all stereotypes, good or bad, come from somewhere... and there are many Arabs who proudly do nothing but perpetuate the "bomb toting" stereotype every day in the evening news... way more influencial than Hollywood could ever pretend to be. Shaheen should set his sights on mainstream news media and how they could present a broader perspective on Arab culture. Instead of complaining that Robert Zemeckis had Doc Brown dupe some Arabs out of their plutonium to make a time machine... the last believable scene in Back to the Future.
Book Description
This digital document is an article from Cineaste, published by Cineaste Publishers, Inc. on September 22, 2003. The length of the article is 1583 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Reel Bad Arabs.(Book Review)
Author: Lisa Suhair Majaj
Publication:
Cineaste (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 22, 2003
Publisher: Cineaste Publishers, Inc.
Volume: 28
Issue: 4
Page: 38(2)
Article Type: Book Review
Distributed by Thomson Gale
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Semiotic Flesh: Information and the Human Body (Short Studies from the Walter Chapin Simpson Center for the Humanities)
Manufacturer: University of Washington Press
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0295982004 |
Book Description
For much of the 20th century, an apparently solid conceptual wall allowed us to separate information and bodies. Yet in the last few decades, it has become increasingly clear that this conceptual wall leaks ñ bodies and information will not stay separate from one another. Data have become flesh just as flesh has become data. Semiotic Flesh marks an important contribution to the emerging field of information studies, providing multiple perspectives on the implications of burgeoning information technologies and biotechnologies.
The essays and responses in this volume focus on the sites where flesh and information productively intermingle, including the strange connections between LSD and DNA research, the implications of computer-assisted surgery, and the role of the human body in virtual reality installations.
Customer Reviews:
excellent collection.......2003-05-28
How many games collections are there by American world title contenders or holders? Only a couple I can think of, including this masterpiece by Reshevsky. A total of 110 of his best games are chronologically arranged and carefully annotated by the author. I found this book to very instructive and entertaining.
Average customer rating:
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Reshevsky's Best Games (Hardinge Simpole Chess Classics)
Samuel Reshevsky
Manufacturer: Hardinge Simpole Limited
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 1843820935 |
Customer Reviews:
Amazing!.......2004-11-09
I have a lot of chess books, and have written lots of reviews. My reviews tend to not be very objective; rather, they are based on whether a book really held my interest, to an extent that I actually finished the book. This is why I think "My System" by Nimzowitsch is perhaps the greatest single chess book: it holds my interest every time I work through it, in a way that few other books have. This games collection by Reshevsky (my original copy is called "Reshevsky's Best Games of Chess") similarly holds my interest, and draws me into it deeper and deeper over time. I cannot say that it has the fascinating peculiarities of a "My System," or the unique engaging dialogue of an "Amateur's Mind," yet there is something about the games and the annotations that is uniquely compelling to me. Reshevksy's opening repertoire is exactly along the lines that I play, consisting almost exclusively of 1. d4 with white and the Sicilian and Indians as black. Yet it is not just the repertoire, but the way he plays it and explains it that is so fascinating to me. I am not a good enough player to fathom the "style" of a Karpov or a Kasparov (or Shirov, Leko, etc.). But for some reason, I find myself sensing something I can relate to in Reshevsky's games. It involves his "pacing" of the opening and middlegame. He plays the openings patiently, and seems to wait until his opponent makes a slight mistake before he gets aggressive. I tend to overreach myself and get too hasty in the openings. But Reshevsky has no problem playing e3 in response to a Slav. It is as if he is playing a Colle without having to deal with ...c5. This morning, I began studying a game in this book. Normally, when I study a chess book early in the morning, I get tired after about a half hour. Today, I was through three games in detail in about an hour before I even realized what time it was. This is what happens to me when I read this book. I cannot say objectively what it is; but I do know that this is one of my favorite chess books, because it has this magical quality that draws me into it and does not let go. Under no circumstances would I ever sell this old Dover copy of this book. If I were to lose it, I would do whatever it took to get another copy.
Average customer rating:
- Brilliant!
- Not really a "best games" collection.
|
Reshevsky's Best Games (Hardinge Simpole Chess Classics)
Samuel Reshevsky
Manufacturer: Hardinge Simpole Limited
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 1843820943 |
Customer Reviews:
Brilliant!.......2004-11-11
My hardcover of this called, "How Chess Games are Won," and this book lives up to its title. People say that Capablanca had a crystal clarity to his play. To me, Reshevsky had this ability as well, but unlike Capa, he had a real gift for annotating chess as well. Here are 59 of his best games from the second half of his career, when he was a fully mature adult and player. This is a rare games collection where every single game is crucial to me. Much of this is because I aspire to precisely Reshevsky's opening repertoire, playing 1. d4 as white, and Indians and the Sicilian as black. Basically every game in this book is in those openings. Reshevsky is a tremendous annotator. He does not aim too high or low, but simply explains what is going on, in a manner that instructs, but more importantly in a manner that heightens my interest in the game. How many authors can do this? I have games collections written by each of the following players: Tarrasch, Tartakower, Capablanca, Alekhine, Timman, Kasparov, Karpov, Shirov, Botvinnik, Smyslov, Taimanov, Polugayevsky, Averbakh, Fischer, Euwe, Fine, and others. Over time, I notice that undoubtedly I spend the most time with my Reshevsky collections, simply because they hold my interest and improve my play more than the others. Of course, I would not trade any of the others, and love them all. But these two Reshevsky books are my favorite. I diasgree with another reviewer who awarded this book 3 stars because he felt it was not up to the standard as "Reshevsky's Best Games," volume 1. Personally, I like volume 2 more, mostly because R. had begun playing the Sicilian, and we get lots of Sicilian games. It is true that there is less life-biography kind of stuff, but I sort of attribute that to his being an adult already at the start of this book. However, I feel strongly that it is not fair to give this book 3 stars, compared to the drivel out there that gets 3 and more stars. To each his own, but I felt compelled to inform chess book lovers out there that this one is definitely worth tracking down. (I have the beatiful hardcover Pittman edition from 1973)
Not really a "best games" collection........2004-10-07
This book is a reprint of Reshevsky's 1962 text "How Chess Games Are Won". It is a collection of Reshevsky's columns from the '50s and early '60s, assembled together under the editorship of Kenneth Harkness in the guise of an instructional volume. The columns, each of which features a Reshevsky game with the GM's brief introduction and laconic notes, are gathered into broad, thematic groupings such as "Inferior Openings", etc., that the author or editor decided best reflected the key characteristic enabling Reshevsky to have won the game.
Accordingly, while the games are generally interesting and have instructional value, anyone expecting an autobiographical collection of the quality of "Reshevsky on Chess" (a.k.a. "Reshevsky's Best Games of Chess" or "Reshevsky's Best Games Vol. 1") is bound to be sorely disappointed. For there is a complete absence of biography from this volume as Reshevsky and Harkness left it; neither is there much attempt to provide context or chronology to link, explain, or enrich the games of the individual columns. Reshevsky, to put it mildly, was not a sparkling or engaging writer, but his extremely simple style could occasionally prove quite serviceable in the composition of an instructional potboiler, of the sort that "How Chess Games Are Won" was intended to be.
Further, despite the publisher's claims (in the back cover blurb) of the book's chronicling "victories over Botvinnik, Keres, and Fischer", one will not actually find any Reshevsky-Fischer contests whatever in this book, while the Botvinnik and Keres games one will find are not part of Reshevsky's text, but have been appended with minimal and scarcely useful notes by GM Ray Keene by way an "appreciation" of Reshevsky tacked on to the front of the book in lieu of a solid biographical or historical introduction.
In short, while "Reshevsky's Best Games - Volume 2" does have some interest as a collection of columns and individual games by perhaps the second-greatest player in American chess history, I believe the publisher could have invested their resources more wisely by reprinting any of several dozen worthier books than this. But, if they really wanted to reprint precisely this Reshevsky text, they should have published it under its original title rather than give the false impression that the volume was either a biographical collection or specifically a best games collection. Because, in reality, it is neither.
Customer Reviews:
Exploring Microsoft Office 2003 Vol. 1 by Robert Grauer.......2005-09-27
Book as described and in good condition; received it in a timely fashion. Would buy from again.
An Extended Handbook to Microsoft Office........2005-05-03
EXPLORING MICROSOFT OFFICE 2003 VOLUME 1 is a textbook that is basically an extended handbook on Microsoft Office. The book has what I would consider six major sections: basics of Microsoft Windows XP, Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, the Internet and the world wide web, and some essential computing concepts. The sections dealing with Windows, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint contain all kinds of helpful hands-on exercises. The Internet and essential computing concepts sections don't have quite as many exercises and contain a little more book rather than hands-on knowledge. To be completely honest, this book is rather boring to read and work through on one's own. However, when used in conjuncture with a class, it makes a great tool.
Customer Reviews:
mostly helpful, not for Mac.......2007-04-04
Helpful for beginners and more well-versed users, though very heavy with busy work. The explanations are pretty clear and simple, and if practice makes perfect, you'd be close to that end after completing everything in this book.
WARNING FOR MAC USERS: don't get this book. It is intended for the PC version of Office, and even though you can still stumble through, most of the shortcuts are slightly different, and the overall way to do things can vary. It's a mess if you have to take this for a class and have a Mac, so think twice before taking such a class.
Book Description
For Introductory Computer courses in Microsoft Office 2003 or courses in Computer Concepts with a lab component for Microsoft Office 2003 applications.
Master the Skills of Office 2003! With the hands-on approach and conceptual framework students will master the skills and apply them in their personal and professional lives.
Average customer rating:
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Exploring Microsoft Office 2003 Volume 1
Prentice Hall
Manufacturer: Not Avail
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 013130318X |
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Exploring Microsoft Office 2003 Volume 1
Prentice Hall
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ASIN: 0131434640 |
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Exploring Microsoft Office 2003 Volume 1
Prentice Hall
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ASIN: 0131434756 |
Book Description
For Introductory Computer courses in Microsoft Office 2003 or courses in Computer Concepts with a lab component for Microsoft Office 2003 applications.
Master the How and Why of Office 2003! Students master the "How and Why" of performing tasks in Office and gain a greater understanding of how to use the individual applications together to solve business problems.
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Exploring Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2003 Volume 1- Adhesive Bound (Exploring)
Robert T. Grauer , and
Maryann Barber
Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
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ASIN: 0131451855 |
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