Unfabling the EastHow Enlightenment Europe rediscovered its identity by measuring itself against the great civilizations of Asia. During the long eighteenth century, Europe's travellers, scholars, and intellectuals looked to Asia in a spirit of puzzlement, irony, and openness. In this panoramic book, Jrgen Osterhammel tells the story of the European Enlightenment's nuanced encounter with the great civilizations of the East, from the Ottoman Empire and India to China