The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order - Book Review
PPOG 506: Introduction to Geopolitics
Introduction
The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order was written by Samuel P.
Huntington and published in 1996. Huntington was an academic and political scientist, who was
active as an advisor to the United States and foreign governments. This book became an
international hit to this day and one of the most influential books ever written relating to foreign
affairs and global politics. He imagines and hypothesizes a new post-Cold War order. Prior to
the Cold War, there was polarizing ideological differences such as democracy and communism.
This ultimately was a driving force for his thesis: “in the post-Cold War, the most important
distinctions among peoples are not ideological, political, or economic. They are cultural
(Huntington 1996, 21).” Therefore, conflict may arise along boundaries of different cultures
while cohesion, unity and stability are found within the cultural boundaries.
Summary
The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order presents five sections that
shape the theme of this book, which is how culture identities shape the patterns of harmony
and conflict in the post-Cold War world. Part one is named “A World of Civilizations,” and
Huntington begins his argument by developing a new “civilization paradigm” because past
models did not accurately reflect the reality of the global political order. He presented eight
major civilizations, and the first one was called Sinic. This civilization consists of communities
in Southeast Asia like China, Vietnam, and Korea. Japanese is the second civilization as it is
distinctively different from the rest of Asia. Hindu is the third civilization which is centered in
India. Islamic is the fourth civilization originating on the Arabian Peninsula and spread
, throughout North Africa and Central Asia. Orthodox is the next civilization, and it is centered
in Russia. Western civilization is located in Europe and North America. The next civilization is
Latin America, and it includes Central and South American countries. Lastly, Africa is its own
civilization. Later in part one, Huntington spoke on the notion of a universal culture. He
believed a single universal culture was not productive in creating and fostering global political
order. However, he did believe as modernization increases cross-cultural communication, so did
similarities among cultures.
Huntington starts off Part Two: The Shifting Balance of Civilizations discussing that
relative power and influence of Western countries is declining. He believes the decline is
slow and not currently an immediate threat. He also believes the decline is not linear. Lastly,
the power, or lack thereof, is influenced by the behavior and decisions of those holding
power.
Religion was also a topic of discussion in chapter five. Huntington mentioned the
importance of religion in world politics. Including religion into politics can be seen as a result
of effective communication among cultures. “They need new sources of identity, new forms of
stable community, and new sets of moral precepts to provide them with a sense of meaning and
politics” (Huntington 1996, 97). The Islamic civilization is a great example, and it
differentiates Muslim politics and societies from others. Muslim societies have created a
cultural identity through religion; “it embodies the acceptance of modernity, rejection of
Western culture, and the recommitment to Islam as the guide to life in the modern world”
(Huntington 1996, 110).
Part Three: The Emerging Order of Civilizations talks about the identity crisis countries
faced after the Cold War. The Cold War created a polarizing climate: either you are on the side
of democracy or communism. Once the war was over, the characterization was not as simple as
before. Countries began aligning themselves to those with similar values and institutions.
PPOG 506: Introduction to Geopolitics
Introduction
The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order was written by Samuel P.
Huntington and published in 1996. Huntington was an academic and political scientist, who was
active as an advisor to the United States and foreign governments. This book became an
international hit to this day and one of the most influential books ever written relating to foreign
affairs and global politics. He imagines and hypothesizes a new post-Cold War order. Prior to
the Cold War, there was polarizing ideological differences such as democracy and communism.
This ultimately was a driving force for his thesis: “in the post-Cold War, the most important
distinctions among peoples are not ideological, political, or economic. They are cultural
(Huntington 1996, 21).” Therefore, conflict may arise along boundaries of different cultures
while cohesion, unity and stability are found within the cultural boundaries.
Summary
The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order presents five sections that
shape the theme of this book, which is how culture identities shape the patterns of harmony
and conflict in the post-Cold War world. Part one is named “A World of Civilizations,” and
Huntington begins his argument by developing a new “civilization paradigm” because past
models did not accurately reflect the reality of the global political order. He presented eight
major civilizations, and the first one was called Sinic. This civilization consists of communities
in Southeast Asia like China, Vietnam, and Korea. Japanese is the second civilization as it is
distinctively different from the rest of Asia. Hindu is the third civilization which is centered in
India. Islamic is the fourth civilization originating on the Arabian Peninsula and spread
, throughout North Africa and Central Asia. Orthodox is the next civilization, and it is centered
in Russia. Western civilization is located in Europe and North America. The next civilization is
Latin America, and it includes Central and South American countries. Lastly, Africa is its own
civilization. Later in part one, Huntington spoke on the notion of a universal culture. He
believed a single universal culture was not productive in creating and fostering global political
order. However, he did believe as modernization increases cross-cultural communication, so did
similarities among cultures.
Huntington starts off Part Two: The Shifting Balance of Civilizations discussing that
relative power and influence of Western countries is declining. He believes the decline is
slow and not currently an immediate threat. He also believes the decline is not linear. Lastly,
the power, or lack thereof, is influenced by the behavior and decisions of those holding
power.
Religion was also a topic of discussion in chapter five. Huntington mentioned the
importance of religion in world politics. Including religion into politics can be seen as a result
of effective communication among cultures. “They need new sources of identity, new forms of
stable community, and new sets of moral precepts to provide them with a sense of meaning and
politics” (Huntington 1996, 97). The Islamic civilization is a great example, and it
differentiates Muslim politics and societies from others. Muslim societies have created a
cultural identity through religion; “it embodies the acceptance of modernity, rejection of
Western culture, and the recommitment to Islam as the guide to life in the modern world”
(Huntington 1996, 110).
Part Three: The Emerging Order of Civilizations talks about the identity crisis countries
faced after the Cold War. The Cold War created a polarizing climate: either you are on the side
of democracy or communism. Once the war was over, the characterization was not as simple as
before. Countries began aligning themselves to those with similar values and institutions.
