orientalism is an idea that the eastern world and the western world have opposite ways of thinking in terms of being and knowledge. it is often shown in the superiority of the west and the inferiority of the east. edward said was the first person to use the word this way in his 1978 book "“orientalism”". he describes orientalism as “a style of thought based upon an ontological and epistemological distinction made between ‘the orient’ and ‘the occident’ ”. before the term orientalism was used by said, it had a different meaning. in 1798, after napoleon invaded egypt, an era started. during this era, it was easier for european colonial powers to use their economic and political power over much of asia and africa. this allowed for more academic study of the east than before. this was called “the oriental renaissance” in the 19th century. it had a large and broad effect on literature, art, and architecture in europe.