Alternatives: Turkish Journal of International Relations, Vol.1, No.2, Summer 2002
81
The ‘Clash of Civilizations’: Revisited after September 11
Engin I. Erdem*
The dissolution of the Soviet Union not only ended the Cold War era but also it
terminated simplistic understanding of world politics, which was dominant during this time. The
bloc mentality of the Cold War has no longer provided an outlook to delineate the picture of the
new period. By the end of the Cold War, henceforth, students of international relations have
witnessed several ‘contending images of world politics’
1
. The images are basically concerned
with redefining the newly emerging world politics. Interestingly, all of these images originate in
the West and in the United States in particular.
2
The linkage is in fact significant as it
demonstrates knowledge-power relationship in international relations. Of these ‘western’ images
of world politics, especially Francis Fukayama’s the ‘End of History’
3
and Samuel P.
Huntington’s the ‘Clash of Civilizations?’ have earned utmost attention. In contrast to
Fukayama’s optimistic vision of future, Huntington has called forth World War III that stems
from clash of civilizations.
4
He predicts that ‘fundamental’ differences among the seven or eight
major civilizations will more likely pave way to global turmoil in years to come.
This paper, aims at revisiting the ‘clash of civilizations’ thesis in post-September 11
world, is consisted of six parts. After introductory section, second section will deal with
Huntington’s arguments, which take place in his article, book, and his respond to the criticisms.
In the third part, seven categories of criticisms on Huntington’s thesis will take place. Then, the
