Jamal Awil

← Muslims in the Western Imagination

Oriental villains shaped horror fiction's portrayal of Muslims [causal]

The noble savages of Romantic Orientalism soon faded away, to be replaced by degenerate and evil Arab men—characters determined, in part, by a desire for the Muslim female. Although these are not the imaginary, non-human monsters examined thus far, Oriental villains strongly influence the monsters found in Gothic horror fiction and later in horror films, which make them an important part of the archive of Muslim monsters.

Sophia Rose Arjana, Muslims in the Western Imag…, loc. 380