Traversing borders of representation: Occidentalism in a Moroccan traveller’s account of Britain’s modernity

Abstract

In 1876, Moroccan Sultan Moulay Hasan sent a delegation to Britain to study artillery and return with a specimen of modern weaponry. This article examines Driss Jaaidi’s report on the journey to Britain through the theoretical lens of Occidentalism, which offers a counter-narrative to Western Orientalism. Jaaidi’s account, produced within the diplomatic context of Moroccan–British relations, diverges from traditional Orientalist texts, offering a respectful and admiring depiction of British modernity. By focusing on technological advancement, industrialization, and mass urban life, Jaaidi’s travelogue emphasizes observation without condescension, contrasting the estrangement found in Western accounts of the East. This study explores how Occidentalism allows non-Western travellers to view the West through a lens of curiosity and respect, fostering a narrative that is forward-looking and temporally progressive. The observer’s language, shaped by an Occidentalist perspective, reflects a register of praise and awe rather than alienation and distortion. The present text suggests that while Orientalism views the East as a relic of the past, Occidentalism, in contrast, portrays the West as a vision of the future – a futuristic artefact.