The search for the image of the "Other" is, in reality, a search for the "Self." With this idea, Thierry Hentsch opened his book, "Imagining the Middle East," stating: "This book is not about the East, it is about us." The same applies to this book, "Imagined Byzantium," which we present to the reader. It is not about Byzantium, but about the Arab self and the way it perceived the Byzantine "Other."

This growing interest in the issue of "otherness," both in our Arab context and in the Western one, has always been referenced by the question of identity, even when it appears absent from the discourse. It is self-evident that the image of the "Other" is not formed in the imagination as objective knowledge; rather, it is an emotional response to the self, primarily defined by what the "I" sees. This makes it a distinctly relational image, as one cannot be discussed in the absence of the other. Indeed, the self is only defined from the outset by placing itself in confrontation with other selves.

Through this book, we will attempt to study the Arab imagination of Byzantium. Although it takes the "Other" as its subject, the "Self" remains constantly present, as it is through the self that the imagination and its various representations are produced. Within this context, we have tried to approach the question of "otherness" in Arab-Islamic culture during its early foundational moments, specifically focusing on the Byzantine "Other." This return to the roots will allow us to understand the mechanisms of how the structure of "otherness" was formed, which coincided with the beginning of the Arabs' awareness of themselves as a dominant power.

• Author: Yassin Al-Yahyawi
• Publisher: Namaa Center for Research and Studies
• Edition: 2
• Year of Publication: 2021
• Number of Pages: 128
• Number of Parts: 1
• Binding Type: Paperback
• Paper Type: Recycled
• Printing Colors: Monochrome
• ISBN: 9789778583632