Eminent
political scientist Samuel P. Huntington presents a different
way of looking at the world in this book. He
believes that in the
post-Cold War era, individual countries and ideologies will be of
lesser importance.
Civilizations will become more prominent and exert
greater influence on political developments. That outlook differs
dramatically from the way political scientists viewed the world
throughout the 20th century.In focusing attention upon
civilizations, Huntington identifies them as being cultural entities.
He notes also that they are not political entities, exercising the
functions of political entities (e.g. tax collection). According to him
they are long-lived and continually evolving. He identifies the
following as being contemporary civilizations in today’s world: Sinic,
Japanese, Hindu, Islamic, Orthodox, Western, Latin American, and
African (although he expresses some doubt about Africa, since colonial
powers effectively make most it tied to other civilizations).After
identifying specific civilizations and commenting on their histories,
Huntington indicates how he sees tensions arising between
civilizations. In particular, he perceives a decrease in power of
Western civilization. Due to shifts in position among civilizations, he
sees global politics being reshaped on the changing status of
civilizations.Since the United States is the leading country
within Western civilization, Huntington effectively envisions a world
where the United States will no longer possess or exercise the power it
has enjoyed for most of the 20th century. As a professor of political
science at one of the country’s leading universities, Harvard,
Huntington is now espousing an idea which is directly counter to what
he and his colleagues have taught their students in years past.
Throughout the period following WWII, political scientists viewed the
United States as a superpower, both militarily and economically. And
following the demise of the Soviet Union, they considered it to be the
sole superpower on the international scene.In Huntington’s projected clash of civilizations, the United States will cease to occupy such a prominent role in the world. .