Washington Irving and Islam

This book examines Washington Irving’s biography of the Prophet Muhammed and his other writings that engage Islamic history and the Muslim world. It explores the influence of Spain, Muslim and Christian legends, gender, and heroic biographies on Irving’s writing and illustrates Irving’s articulation of Orientalism and American nationalism.

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Washington Irving and Islam contributes to understanding the relationship between the United States and the Islamic world, valuable not only for studies of Washington Irving, American Literature, or Islam, but also for thinking through the role Islam and the “Orient” have played in American literature and history, a critical field receiving ever-increasing attention. The global context of Irving’s work ties these essays together as does an understanding that his writings challenge easy classification of the Muslim other, and, indeed, challenge easy classification of Irving’s own responses to that other. Washington Irving bestrides opposing positions as well as distant worlds.