Abstract
Applying the ideas of Edward Said about orientalism and about the relationship between colonialism and culture, we discuss the eurocentric opposition between the Western "I" and the Oriental "other". Works by 19th century European painters are analyzed with the iconological method and compared, to underline the marginality of some images and the centrality of others. We show that similar representations are found in the Western law, as a discourse of the colonial power exerted in the metropolis and also in the periphery, a discourse that still lives today and still finds resistance and opposition.
Key-words:
Edward Said; european art of the nineteenth century; iconological method; colonial law; decolonial law