Ideology and Culture

In considering this week's topic of "Ideology and Culture," I thought the main argument of Samuel Huntington's "The Clash of Civilizations" was particularly striking. Huntington argues that the "fundamental source of conflict in this new world will not be primarily ideological or primarily economic," rather, he argues, "the dominating source of conflict will be cultural."
Huntington begins by commenting on past conflicts that have been the result of ideological differences. For example, he argues that after World War I, conflict shifted from conflict of nations to conflict of ideologies, "first among communism, fascism-Nazism and liberal democracy." This period of history clearly witnessed conflict of ideologies.
Today, Huntington predicts that the greatest divisions in the world will be along cultural lines. While he provides several reasons supporting his hypothesis, I found one to be most interesting and, at some level, ironic. Huntington makes the claim that the most important conflicts of the future will occur along cultural lines because "the world is becoming a smaller place" and the increasing interactions between different cultures will "intensify civilization consciousness and awareness of differences between civilizations." Modern technology has enabled us to be in constant communication with people all over the world. The ease of e-mail and cell phones allows more frequent interaction with people of different civilizations. One may argue that this increased frequency of communication facilitates dialogue and allows for a better understanding of different cultures. However, Huntington believes that such interaction enhances a cultural consciousness that "invigorates differences and animosities."
While no one can confirm whether this century's major conflicts will be ideological or cultural in nature, it is interesting to consider Huntington's point that the world "becoming a smaller place" is resulting in cultural awareness that promotes animosity between civilizations. As mentioned in lecture, Putnam's book, Bowling Alone, discusses how the degree of connection in American society has decreased, as seen in the decline in participation in forms of civil society, such as bowling leagues. I believe Huntington is making a similar point on a broader scale. While cars, phones, planes, computers, and other forms of modern technology have made the world smaller and more available to us, we are losing our true connections to society. And not only are we losing our true connections to society, but we are also stirring up animosities that could result in major conflicts between civilizations.