The Clash Of Civilizations By Samuel P. Huntington

764 Words2 Pages

The Clash of Civilizations by Samuel P. Huntington interprets contemporary and projected conflicts, implying that the clash of civilizations will create the sustenance for all conflict to follow. He advocates that prior warfare and conflict advance from the work of monarchies, to the stuff of nation states, to the result of ideological differences. In conclusion, Huntington predicts that civilization divisions and misunderstandings will encourage all debates to come.
Furthermore into his argument, Huntington explains what attributes constitute a civilization. He proposes that civilizations share basic commonalities that have been established over time, and are unlikely to change quickly. These include history, language, religion, and customs plus other basic characteristics that all members of that division strongly identify with. Civilizations could be large or small, and could overlap creating sub-civilizations. The broadest level of identification that one identifies with is a civilization, and as individuals reformulate their values and identities, then civilizations adapt and shift.
Once Huntington completed his analysis of civilizations, he proceeds into his explanation of his claim that civilization identity will be more important in the future because of the interactions that will unfold between the major civilization participants, and that there are various reasons that a clash is imminent. The first reason is that the differences in views amongst these groups are on an integral level. They consist of basic questions, such as what the relationships are between man and God, individual and group, and parent and child. Additionally, the interactions between these civilizations are increasing rapidly, therefore causing ...

... middle of paper ...

...ter positioned to Westernize than others, and the Confucian and Islamic groups are among those that are less likely to embrace Western culture. Essentially, these groups have established a connection with each other, constructing a significant challenge to Western interests through their alliance and increased weaponization. As the West, de-weaponizes, this civilization rallying may flare up in some of the most intense conflict to come.
As Huntington outlines, the indications of civilization-consciousness are countless and sophisticated, and serve to further differentiate groups rather than bring them together. This evaluation may prove useful when acknowledged in relation to the civilization exclusivity idea, as it not only recommends that civilizations are unable to truly understand one another, but that the results of different opinions are sometimes volatile.

Open Document