The construction of the “Other” in Medieval Iberia: the apocalyptical representation of the Moor in visual and literary texts.

 Gabriela Cerghedean, Adjunct Assistant Professor of Modern Languages and Literatures

This presentation examines the construction of the Muslim “Other” in Medieval Iberia and demonstrates how visual and literary works, once transformed into a powerful negative ideological creation, become a Text of Resistance, a Text of Persecution, and a Text of Propaganda. In Medieval Iberia, Antichrist develops its own figure and its own persona in its identification with the Muslim, a characteristic specific to the Peninsula. The association of the Moors with the terrifying, demonical figures of the Book of Revelation promotes a strong anti-Islamic ideology that will greatly influence the literary and artistic representation of the Moors in Spain. To that end, I will analyze various medieval texts that serve as perfect examples of the Christian polemical and propagandistic literature against the Moors and play a key role in the construction of the new and unique apocalyptical discourse of the Muslim “Other."

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Hot buffet lunch will be available for $3.00 beginning at 12:00 noon. To ensure an accurate count, please RSVP to vpaa@beloit.edu by noon on Monday, April 1.

This event is open to Beloit College faculty and staff only.