The Clash Of Ignorance By Edward Said

From the earliest and most basic history classes taught in school, students are presented with the concept of “civilization”, and how they rise and fall with time. These “civilizations” presented range from the Sumerian to Roman to Western Civilizations. As taught, when one civilization rises to power, another typically falls from power. This rise and fall typically includes a clash that brings one civilization to dominance and another to its knees. Samuel P. Huntington believes that the next “clash of civilizations” will occur between the “Western” and “Islamic” civilizations. Scholars have varying opinions on Huntington’s claim, ranging from supporting material to “The Clash of Ignorance” by Edward Said.

To best evaluate Huntington’s

The first of these different meanings of civilization came from French jurists of the 1560s, who began to classify people as “civilité” and civilisé” based on how different peoples were governed (Patterson, 29). Since that time, the term has expanded and has been used more and more to “other” people. This “othering” as a part of civilization “was forged in the context of European oversees colonial expansion…” and “was used by the elites…to distinguish themselves from the people they encountered” (Patterson, 30). In modern times, civilization is seen and taught to be “beneficial, desirable—and definitely preferable to being uncivilized” (Patterson, 1). Thomas Hobbes also weighs in on the civilization versus barbarism debate. According to one source, Hobbs believes civilization “has been a condition which combines government, leisure and intellectual cultivation” (Kraynak, 90). According to Huntington, “Civilization is not a thing: it is an idea, a concept, a way of organizing reality”(Patterson, 22). Huntington describes civilization as “the highest cultural grouping of a people and the broadest level of cultural identity…” (Huntington 43). According to him, many layers exist within a civilization, like customs, institutions, and religions. He also claims civilization should be inclusive not exclusive. This definition is very similar to the definition

He says: “First, a distinction exists between civilization in the singular and civilizations in the plural” (Huntington, 40). Next he claims that civilization is a “culture writ large” (Huntington, 41) and is in the most basic form a “cultural identity” (Huntington, 41). Thirdly, Huntington claims that civilizations are comprehensive. This means, “none of their constituent units can be fully understood without reference to the encompassing civilization” (Huntington, 42). This idea means, in theory that a city in Arkansas is different from a city in California, but both share a commonality of being an American and “Western” city, and being “Western” cities they are not part of any “broader cultural identity” (Huntington, 43). This reinforces the overall claim that Civilizations are the “broadest level of cultural identity” (Huntington, 43). Fourth, Huntington claims that Civilizations must be long lasting. They must remain despite “political, social, economic, and even ideological upheavals” (Huntington, 43). Huntington’s last criterion for civilization is that they do not function as governments. Since civilization is so broad, it is above normal governments of individual states, and therefore should not take part in the governing of any states, which belong to that civilization (Huntington, 43). Currently, six possibly seven civilizations exist in the world,