ABSTRACT
In place of a barren legacy, this final chapter concludes that, for modern writers, the Arabian desert remains a tabula rasa upon which to project relevant contemporary discussion. Whether they do so by repacking old baggage or by divesting themselves of outmoded concepts, the conscious concern of many is in the crafting of their journey in a way that gives it meaning. In the place of confident projects that describe the heroic self, the Arab Other, and the land left behind, where nostalgia was once used largely as a tool for self-congratulation, a growing doubt is expressed by the modern writers considered in this book – doubt about individual capability, about the ability to represent the Other, and about the hitherto unquestioned supposed superiority not just of a once dominant culture but also in terms of human domination over the natural world. The book suggests, if the habit of self-evaluation betrays a growing maturation in the individual, then it may also evidence an optimistic development within the genre of desert writing too, allowing for the experience of travel to be revived in its capacity to educate and to enhance intercultural understanding.
