LECTURES
Week 4 Oct 4 – 6 – Lecture: CLASH OF CIVILIZATIONS: THE HUNTINGTON HYPOTHESIS
Week 5 Oct 12 – 13 – Lecture: PACIFISTS AND WARRIORS: FROM KANT TO HITLER
Samuel P. Huntington, “The Clash of Civilizations?”, Foreign Affairs, Vol. 72, No. 3, (Summer 1993.) pp. 22-49
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In his 1993 Foreign Affairs article, Samuel P. Huntington argues that in the future civilizations rather than nation-states and ideologies might be primary combatants in global warfare. Some compare his article to the July 1947 Foreign Affairs article by X (George Kennan) “The Sources of Soviet Conduct” which defined the Cold War from 1947 to 1991.
Questions
What is a civilization? What are the current functioning and surviving civilizations?
If civilizations are to clash, then why? If not. then why not?
What have others thought of Huntington’s hypothesis? What are its problems and weaknesses?
What do some of Huntington’s critics place their hope in to prevent the clash?
Who are we? What unifies as into “Western civilization?” What divides us? What threatens us? What pleases us collectively as a civilization? What do we desire and seek as a people? What is the fundamental nature of our civilization? Our traditions, values, beliefs?
What is the nature of Western civilization in the small corner of which we currently function as enrolled students and employed faculty of an accredited university, located in the Municipality of Toronto, in the County of York, in the Province of Ontario, in the nation of Canada? How might it be different from Western civilization just 90 miles away across the Niagara River border in the municipality of Buffalo, Erie County, State of New York, United States of America?
What is the role of ideology and theology in warfare and civilization formation?
What are the fundamental natures of other current civilizations? Their divisions and fears? What are the differences between them? Between them and us? What are the similarities? Must civilizations clash? “Why can’t we just all get along?” [Rodney King]
How are all the civilizations divided among themselves and even divided upon their perception of other civilizations?
What is the role of traditions, myth and cultural beliefs in civilizations and in warfare?
How do epochs unify civilizations into the agrarian, industrial, and information ‘civilizations’ and what impact do these passages have on society and warfare? What are the dimensions of these divisions in the context of Huntington’s hypothesis?
Is warfare a natural state of civilization? What has been the cause of wars in the past? Today?
What are the different things wars are fought over?
In 2010 is it the “West and the rest”?
What impact has 9/11 had on Huntington’s 1993 hypothesis?
What is genocide? What is war?
Is genocide a clash of civilizations? What role does it play in civilization? In warfare? Is warfare inherently going to be genocidal?
Can civilization maintain a “perpetual peace?” What is required?
How does Gandhi view civilization? How does he understand the relationship between Western civilization and the Hindu civilization? How does this view fit into the colonial context between Britain and India?
What is sovereignty and its relationship to war?
Can war be “regulated”? The laws of war. War Crimes.
LECTURE POINTS
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The constantly increasing rate of change / “the velocity of history.” “Future Shock” Alvin Toffler (1970) Huntington’s “seven or eight” civilizations: Three Pillars of Western European-North American Civilization: What is Justice? What are the Western civilization’s premises of Justice? Wars over slavery. Justinian Code Justinian’s Institutes published in Constantinople, A,D. (C,E,) 533 Napoleonic Code Blackwell’s Commentaries on the Law Common Law (England, Canada) Codified Law (United States) Codified Napoleonic (Europe) Foreign Affairs and the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) [What is it?] Who says? Who published Huntington’s article? (And X’s article.) American Isolationism [non-entanglement] X and “The Sources of Soviet Conduct” in Foreign Affairs, (July 1947) Cold War – Truman Doctrine – Containment Theory Nuclear weapons development George F. Kennan LINK “The Long Telegram” February 22, 1946 861.00/2 – 2246: Telegram, The Charge in the Soviet Union (Kennan) to the Secretary of State SECRET Moscow, February 22, 1946–9 p.m. [Received February 22–3: 52 p.m.] The Hamitic Myth / “The Curse of Ham” Tribes – Chiefs / Kingdoms – Kings / Empires – Emperors/ Nations – Statesmen [Presidents, Premiers, Chairmen, Prime Ministers Treaty Of Westphalia (Peace of Westphalia) 1648 Religious Wars (Wars Of Religion) Dynastic Wars Kant – Tolstoy – Ghandi – Nietzsche – Mussolini – Hitler Kant: “Perpetual Peace” vs Perpetual Struggle (War) the Enlightenment French Revolution 1789-1799 Ideological Wars Slavery – Corporations and slave trading — slave wars? Wars over slavery. Lecture Resume For Sec 1 Oct 18 Industrial Wars The Four Great Industrial Wars Total War (totalen Krieg) Wars of Attrition World Wars blitzkrieg (lightening war) rattenkrieg (rat war) sitzkrieg (sitting war) Racial War War of Extermination War of Liberation War of Rebellion Colonial War Guerrilla War Proxy War Class War Low Intensity War Pre-emptive War United Nations Chartered War Oil/Gold/Diamond/Water/…Wars |
WEEK FIVE READING LECTURE DISCUSION Kant “Perpetual Peace”
Tolstoy
Ghandi
Nietzsche
Mussolini
Hitler
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