The Sublime Object of Orientalism

Asian Physical Culture in the West

Paul Bowman

• Publisher: Hong Kong University Press
• Year: 2026
• Topic: Social Sciences
• eBook ISBN:
  9789888900466
• Subtopic: Cultural & Social Anthropology
• Index: Social Sciences

The Sublime Object of Orientalism proposes that globalised Asian physical cultural practices such as taiji, qigong, yoga, and meditation can be understood by examining the intimate connection between Western orientalism and the Romantic aesthetic notion of the sublime. The book recasts 'orientalist physical culture' as practices animated by the sublime and argues that this relationship is stronger than has hitherto been recognised by commentators. Bowman combines new readings of philosophers and cultural critics such as Slavoj Žižek and Jane Iwamura with analyses of film, media, and Asian physical practices and their entrepreneurial forms to shed light on the quest to articulate a philosophy of orientalist physical culture. He also explores ways to make sense of orientalist physical culture in the contemporary world and evaluate the often-problematic ideologies that circulate around these cultural practices without either uncritically accepting their value or rejecting them outright. This empathetic and accessible volume is a must-read for students, researchers, and teachers of cross-cultural studies, cultural theory, postcolonialism, and orientalism.

Table of contents

• Synposis
• Author Biography
• Endorsements
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• List of Figures
• Preface
• Acknowledgements
• 1. The Sublime Object of Orientalism
• 2. Translating the Sublime Object from Hong Kong to Hollywood
• 3. The Sublime Object of Purity
• 4. Sublime Qi Magic
• 5. The Sublime Object of Cultural Difference
• 6. ‘Breathe, Believe, Deceive’
• 7. Towards a Sublime Philosophy of Orientalist Physical Culture
• 8. Conclusion
• References
• Filmography
• Index