Skip to content

Middle east Quote by Bernard Lewis

Download Open image
““Different groups in the [Middle East] drew two lessons from [return of the shah in Iran] - one, that Americans were willing to use both force and intrigue to install or restore their puppet rulers in Middle Eastern countries; the other, that they were not reliable patrons when these puppets were seriously attacked by their own people, and would simply abandon them. The one evoked hatred, the other contempt - a dangerous combination. Clearly, something deeper is involved than these specific grievances, numerous and important as they may be, something deeper which turns every disagreement into a problem and makes every problem insoluble. What we confront now is not just a complaint about one or another American policy but rather a rejection and condemnation, at once angry and contemptuous, of all that America is seen to represent in the modern world. (76)””

Bernard Lewis

3.7 out of 5 (10 ratings)

More by Bernard Lewis

Explore all 58 Bernard Lewis quotes

More Middle east quotes

Browse all 1,466 Middle east quotes