This essay examines the appropriations of Edward Said's concept of orientalism by Miltom Hatoum in his novels Relato de um certo oriente (1989) and Dois Irmãos (2000). We develop the hypothesis that, as a native of the Amazonian city of Manaus, Hatoum critically explores the distinction and separation between East and West in the texts Said refers to as orientalist by playfully approaching rather than essentializing it. Hatoum thus indicates that, rather than being natural, the differences are transformed by encounters and by close contact with the Other. We explore the hypothesis that the writer assumes a singular border position - within and outside the East, the West and the Amazon - which is similar to that occupied by Said. We then discuss Hatoum's role in the diffusion of Said's work in Brazil and, finally, the importance of so-called orientalist texts in the author's academic background.
Hatoum; Said; orientalism