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Palmira Brummett

See Also: Curriculum Vitae | History 261: World History I | History 369: Middle Eastern History

Field Specialties

Middle Eastern History, World History, Ottoman History, Women in Cross-Cultural Perspective

Professor Brummett teaches Middle Eastern history, world history, and rhetorics of cross-cultural encounter (East-West, national, gendered). She is interested in the ways in which identities are imagined and constructed. Her specialty is the Ottoman empire, particularly its history of commerce and communication in the Afro-Eurasian sphere: "I am interested in all aspects of the history of a broad region centering on the Middle East but extending into South Asia, Africa, and Europe. I like to explore the intersections between rhetoric and reality; and I want my students to think about the differences between ideology, rhetoric, and action. Two of my recent classes focused on how national identity is "mapped" in words and images, and on comparative women's history in the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia. Recent research projects have focused on early twentieth century Ottoman cartoons, and on ceremonies of submission--the words, actions, and material goods that a person, group or kingdom uses when it submits to another person, group, or kingdom (15th-17th centuries). Currently I am working on a book that explores the ways in which Europeans mapped the Ottomans, in narrative and image, in the Early Modern era, and compares those craftings of space, sovereignty, and society to Ottoman self mappings.

Education

  • Ph.D. University of Chicago, 1988
  • M.P.H. University of Illinois School of Public Health, 1981

Selected Publications

  • Ottoman Seapower and Levantine Diplomacy in the Age of Discovery (SUNY 1994)

  • Image and Imperialism in the Ottoman Revolutionary Press (SUNY 2000)

  • Civilizations Past and Present (Longmans, 2000, 2003 and 2005)

Selected Honors and Awards

  • National Endowment for the Humanities grant, 2003-2004
  • Lindsay Young Professorships, 1998 and 1999
  • Phi Beta Kappa Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching and Research, 1995.
Palmira Brummett

Contact Information

Palmira Brummett
Professor of History
Distinguished Professor of Humanities
915 Volunteer Boulevard
6th Floor, Dunford Hall
Knoxville, TN 37996-4065

Office: (865) 974-7093
Fax: (865) 974-3915
E-mail: palmira@utk.edu