the Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order

In the summer of 1993 Foreign Affairs published an article entitled ''The Clash of Civilizations?'' by Samuel Huntington. No article, according to the editors of that distinguished journal, has generated more discussion since George Kennan's ''X'' article on containment in the 1940s. Now, Mr. Huntington expands on his article, explores further the issues he raised then, and develops many new penetrating and controversial analyses. In the article, he posed the question whether conflicts between civilizations would dominate the future of world politics. In the book, he gives his answer, showing not only how clashes between civilizations are the greatest threat to world peace but also how an international order based on civilizations is the best safeguard against war. Events in the past few years have confirmed Mr. Huntington's earlier judgments. Increasingly, people define themselves on the basis of ancestry, language, religion, and customs. Today, in the post-Cold War world, the critical distinctions between people are not primarily ideological or economic; they are cultural. World politics is being reconfigured along cultural lines, with new patterns of conflict and cooperation replacing those of the Cold War. The hot spots in world politics are on the ''fault lines'' between civilizations: witness the fighting in Bosnia, Chechnya, the Transcaucasus, Central Asia, Kashmir, the Middle East, Tibet, Sri Lanka, Sudan, and many other places. Mr. Huntington explains how the population explosion in Muslim countries and the economic rise of East Asia are changing global politics. These developments challenge Western dominance, promote opposition to supposedly ''universal'' Western ideals, and intensify intercivilization conflict over such issues as nuclear proliferation, immigration, human rights, and democracy. The Muslim population surge has led to many small wars throughout Eurasia, and the rise of China could lead to a global war of civilizations. Mr. Huntington sets forth a strategy for the West to preserve its unique culture and emphasizes the need for people everywhere to learn to coexist in a complex, multipolar, multicivilizational world. The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order is an insightful and powerful analysis of the forces driving global politics today and into the next century. It is sure to be one of the most talked about books of the decade. "Sam Huntington, one of the West's most eminent political scientists, presents a challenging framework for understanding the realities of global politics in the next century. The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order is one of the most important books to have emerged since the end of the Cold War." --HENRY A. KISSINGER Based on the author's seminal article in Foreign Affairs , Samuel P. Huntington's The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order is a provocative and prescient analysis of the state of world politics after the fall of communism. In this incisive work, the renowned political scientist explains how "civilizations" have replaced nations and ideologies as the driving force in global politics today and offers a brilliant analysis of the current climate and future possibilities of our world's volatile political culture. "An intellectual tour de force: bold, imaginative, and provocative. A seminal work that will revolutionize our understanding of international affairs." --ZBIGNIEW BRZEZINSKI "The book is studded with insights, flashes of rare brilliance, great learning, and in particular, an ability to see the familiar in a new and provocative way." --MICHAEL ELLIOTT, THE WASHINGTON POST BOOK WORLD "A benchmark for informed speculation on those always fascinating questions: Just where are we in history? What hidden hand is controlling our destiny?...A searching reflection on our global state." --RICHARD BERNSTEIN, THE NEW YORK TIMES "This is what is so stunning about The Clash of Civilizations: It is not just about the future, but may actually help to shape it." --WANG GUNGWU, THE NATIONAL INTEREST In The Summer Of 1993 Foreign Affairs Published An Article Entitled The Clash Of Civilizations? By Samuel Huntington. No Article, According To The Editors Of That Distinguished Journal, Has Generated More Discussion Since George Kennan's X Article On Containment In The 1940s. Now, Mr. Huntington Expands On His Article, Explores Further The Issues He Raised Then, And Develops Many New Penetrating And Controversial Analyses. In The Article, He Posed The Question Whether Conflicts Between Civilizations Would Dominate The Future Of World Politics. In The Book, He Gives His Answer, Showing Not Only How Clashes Between Civilizations Are The Greatest Threat To World Peace But Also How An International Order Based On Civilizations Is The Best Safeguard Against War. 1. The New Era In World Politics -- 2. Civilizations In History And Today -- 3. A Universal Civilization? Modernization And Westernization -- 4. The Fading Of The West: Power, Culture, And Indigenization -- 5. Economics, Demography, And The Challenger Civilizations -- 6. The Cultural Reconfiguration Of Global Politics -- 7. Core States, Concentric Circles, And Civilizational Order -- 8. The West And The Rest: Intercivilizational Issues -- 9. The Global Politics Of Civilizations -- 10. From Transition Wars To Fault Line Wars -- 11. The Dynamics Of Fault Line Wars -- 12. The West, Civilizations, And Civilization. Samuel P. Huntington. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. From the Preface... In the summer of 1993 the journal Foreign Affairs published an article of mine titled "The Clash of Civilizations?". That article, according to the Foreign Affairs editors, stirred up more discussion in three years than any other article they had published since the 1940s. It certainly stirred up more debate in three years than anything else I have written. The responses and comments on it have come from every continent and scores of countries. People were variously impressed, intrigued, outraged, frightened, and perplexed by my argument that the central and most dangerous dimension of the emerging global politics would be conflict between groups from differing civilizations. Whatever else it did, the article struck a nerve in people of every civilization. Given the interest in, misrepresentation of, and controversy over the article, it seemed desirable for me to explore further the issues it raised. One constructive way of posing a question is to state an hypothesis. The article, which had a generally ignored question mark in its title, was an effort to do that. This book is intended to provide a fuller, deeper, and more thoroughly documented answer to the article's question. I here attempt to elaborate, refine, supplement, and, on occasion, qualify the themes set forth in the article and to develop many ideas and cover many topics not dealt with or touched on only in passing in the article. List of Illustrations: Tables, Figures, Maps Preface A World of Civilizations The New Era in World Politics Civilizations in History and Today A Universal Civilization? Modernization and Westernization The Shifting Balance of Civilizations The Fading of the West: Power, Culture, and Indigenization Economics, Demography, and the Challenger Civilizations The Emerging Order of Civilizations The Cultural Reconfiguration of Global Politics Core States, Concentric Circles, and Civilizational Order Clashes of Civilizations The West and the Rest: Intercivilizational Issues The Global Politics of Civilizations From Transition Wars to Fault Line Wars The Dynamics of Fault Line Wars The Future of Civilizations The West, Civilizations and Civilization. Notes Index 1. A world of civilizations The new era in world politics Civilizations in history and today A universal civilization? Modernization and Westernization 2. The shifting balance of civilizations The fading of the West: power, culture, and indigenization Economics, demography, and the challenger civilizations 3. The emerging order of civilizations The cultural reconfiguration of global politics Core states, concentric circles, and civilizational order 4. Clashes of civilizations The West and the rest: intercivilizational issues The global politics of civilizations From transition wars to fault line wars The dynamics of fault line wars 5. The future of civilizations The West, civilizations and civilization. Based on the author's seminal article in Foreign Affairs, Samuel P. Huntington's The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order is an analysis of the state of world politics after the fall of communism. In this work, Huntington explains how "civilizations" have replaced nations and ideologies as the driving force in global politics today and offers an analysis of the current climate and future possibilities of our world's volatile political culture. --From publisher's description On January 3, 1992, a meeting of Russian and American scholars took place in the auditorium of a government building in Moscow.