Echoing Edward Said’s Orientalism, and Homi Bhabha’s notion of the stereotype as mimicry (camouflage), this research project investigates the recent construction of a Muslim male identity as the Other and Self-Othering following the destruction by al- Qaeda of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, referred to colloquially as ‘post-9/11’. The fear of a bearded Muslim terrorist, of attacks from Muslim fundamentalist organizations, the distrust leading to extreme security measures and the subsequent laws contributing to the discrimination and radicalization of the Muslim community are analysed. This research identifies and explains the myths surrounding the Muslim cultural and religious practices relating to the traditional appearance of a Muslim male, specifically the beard and marks of prostration, along with associated imagery derived from the prayer rug, Muslim worship, Salat, and the mosque. Beehive metaphors in Western and Muslim art, history, literature and media are explored. The dualistic concepts surrounding the stereotypes and personifications that result in ‘otherness’ are the key aspects of this research. Using the binary nature of beehive metaphors, as well as both cultures’ propaganda about the West’s Crusade and Islam’s Jihad, the making of a post-9/11 Muslim identity as jihadi, martyr and terrorist are investigated, culminating in artworks comprising of self-portraiture, sculptures, prints, drawings and installation art. These express layers of interpretation of the clash of international political entities alongside the cultural contestations and religious belief systems within the Muslim culture, and reflections upon my own identity as a Muslim man divided between the East and the West. Due to its conceptual yet allegorical content, this research is descriptive, and is intended to lay the ground for future research aimed at examining the compounded variables of potential cultural clashes, religious conflicts, and political action.

Thesis (M.A.)--International School of Theology, 1987. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 66-[77]).

Pädag. Akad. des Bundes Salzburg, Diplomarbeit--Salzburg, 2007.

Thesis (Maste). / Includes bibliographical references (p. 119-127).

Thesis--Syracuse University. / Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves [1-25] (3d group)).

Thesis (Maste). / Includes bibliographical references (p. 119-127).

"Tesis doctoral." / At head of title: Instituto de Estudios Africanos. Bibliography: p. [15]-19.

Thesis--Heidelberg. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 226-230).

Thesis--Syracuse University. / Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves [1-25] (3d group)).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Chicago, Dept. of Political Science, August 1999. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.