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Question: Clash of Civilizations!?
I have to write a paper for a class and i cant seem to be able to come up with ideas for it!. A little help or some key points i should make would be greatly appreciated

Question: Which of the essays in the Huntington book "The Clash of Civilizations!?" do you find most intellectually compelling and why!? In the process of answering this question, you may also analyze the other essays to demonstrate their weaknesses!. Be specific and DO NOT SIMPLY SUMMARIZE!.


I really need help connected some of the other essays in this book to the first essay the clash of civilizations!.
Sorry this is kind of confusingWww@QuestionHome@Com


Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:
I've written a paper on this particular article but never read the other essays but only compared it to outside sources so I can't answer anything about the other essays in the bood!. Anyhow, the arguments I made doing my research were as follows:

Huntington claims that the primarily ideological derived conflict of the Cold War will be replaced by a conflict of people’s religious and cultural identities!. Thus, a clash between civilizations will become the main global concern during the post Cold War!. He also claims that as ideological identity fades, people more so define themselves through ethnic and religious terms in which they become more inclined to see people of different ethnicity or religion as an “us versus them” scenario!. What he calls “fault lines” between civilizations replaced the Iron Curtain!. Huntington also claims that since people of different civilizations are increasingly interacting with one another, civilization consciousness intensifies!. Huntington also divides the globe into 8 civilizations: Latin American, Western, Slavic-Orthodox, Islamic, Hindu, Confucian, Japanese, and possibly African!. The main problem I had with Huntington ’s article, is the way he divided these civilizations as the meaning of the word tends to be too broad!. Being several years since the Cold War ended, we can see that his theory sometimes appeals to be an exaggeration than an actual reality!.

Huntington proceeds in his article by mentioning that the West will have a more difficult time promoting liberalism and democracy as universal values because governments and groups will attempt to mobilize support by appealing to common religion and civilization identity!. This has turned out to be true!. Following the Cold War, what was known as the Iron Curtain that divided the world between NATO signatory states and Warsaw Pact signatory states became replaced with a curtain that divided the globe not into two main blocs, but several different dividing entities!. Although, I would not define it as broadly as divisions of civilizations!. With more global divisions, states or groups have more options of where to side!. Siding with the Western hemisphere is no longer one of two choices (three if one counts neutrality), but one of many since the fall of the Soviet Union!. Countries like the United States as Huntington predicted, now have more difficulty rallying support for their ideas!.

A prediction was also made by Huntington that the conflict between West and Islam are unlikely to decline due to a more prominent cultural division between Western Christianity and Islam!. Although more than correct, my response to this would be that it is natural for cultures, even states and regions to conflict with one another when the dual blocs of the Cold War disappeared!. For example, the tight relationship between the United States and even much of Western Europe is loosening ever since the Soviet’s fall despite that they are both “Western”; a term which is very broad as Western includes Anglo Saxon cultures, Romance cultures, Catholic influenced states, and Protestant influenced states!. With allies dissipating due to a loss of a common enemy, the cohesion of allies become less relevant!.

On the previous note, an example of the unlikelihood of a Western-Islamic decline but rather a rise would be the results after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan!. During the invasion, the U!.S!. supported al Qaeda, and to al Qaeda’s best interest, accepted U!.S!. support!. With the fall the Soviet Union, their dependencies upon one another also fall!. The cohesiveness of the U!.S!. and some notable Muslim countries and groups due to a common enemy loss also become less relevant!. The rise of a Western-Islamic conflict was a remarkable prediction made by Huntington as it turned out to be the most notable conflict ever since his article was published!.

However, "Western" as mentioned previously, contains different cultures and religious backgrounds!. The difference within the Islamic world are even more prominent!. The Kurds, Saudis, and Indonesians for example, do not share too many similarities outside Islam and even have differing views of Islam!. Islam is also a divided religion!. Another thing to consider is the perspectives of the government opposed to the perspectives of the citizens!. In a democracy, the government more so reflects the people!. In less democratic such as many Muslim states (but not all), this is not the case!. For example, the Pakistani government according to the current administration, is an ally of the United States!. However, much of the Pakistani citizens would rather side with Bin Ladin before they would the U!.S!. An opposite example of this is Iran!. Despite tensions between the U!.S!. and the Iranian government, many Iranian citizens are pro-American (Roskin and Berry 2002)!.

Huntington also argues that groups or states belonging to one civilization that become involved in war with people from difWww@QuestionHome@Com