International Global
Communication
Week 1
Francis Fukuyama – the end of history
20th century unabashed victory of economic and political liberalism.
Spreading the western culture and idea in diverse context of society.
The end of history end point of mankind’s ideological evolution and the
universalization of western liberal democracy as the final form of human
government.
Karl Marx history has a direction with a purpose (materialistic &
dialectic) and the interplay of material forces would come to an end only
with achieving the communist utopia.
Hegel the first one who concepted history as dialectical. History
culminates in an absolute moment = final rational form of society
becomes victorious.
1806: end of history for Hegel napoleon was defeated in the battle of
Jena and this event actualised the principles of the French revolution.
The basic principles of the liveral democratic state could not be
improved upon.
The contradictions that drive history exist first of all in the realm of
human consciousness (level of ideas – large unifying world views that is
best understood under the rubric of ideology).
IDEOLOGY = not restricted to secular and explicit political doctrines
For Hegel the distinction between the ideal and the real is only apparent
and it is overcome by the self-conscious subject. Material world aspect
of the mind.
Human history = rooted in a prior state of consciousness which may not
be explicit and self-aware
Realm of consciousness necessarily becomes manifest in the material
world and creates the material world as its own image.
CONSCIOUSNESS IS THE CAUSE NOT THE EFFECT, it develops
autonomously from the material world.
Marx revers the real and ideal = superstructure made by the mode of
production.
Religion, art, culture philosophy was determined entirely by prevailing
the material world of production.
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Materialist bias of modern thought is characteristic not only of people on
the left but also for anti Marxists.
Ideology and culture influence the perception of human beings rational,
profit-maximising individual who pursuit material incentives.
Weber different economic performance of protestant and catholic
communities throughout Europe and America. Weber notes that
according to any economic theory that posited man as a rational profit
maximiser, raising the piece-work rate should increase labour
productivity.
However, it had the opposite effect.
Dualism catholic vs protestant
Catholic poverty & security
Protestant wealth & risk.
To say that history ended in 1806 meant that mankind’s ideological evolution
ended with the ideals of the French or American revolutions and could not be
improved upon.
Idealist (like Hegel) believe that human society can be built around any
arbitrary set of principles regardless of their relationship to the material
world.
Two major challenges to liberalism fascism & communism
Fascism it saw political weakness, materialism, anomie and lack of
community of the west as fundamental contradictions in liberal societies
that could be resolved by a strong state.
Fascism was destroyed as a living ideology by WWII = material &
ideological defeat
Communism another alternative to liberalism. Society contained a
fundamental contradiction. Accusation against liberalism.
According to Kojève the egalitarianism of modern America represents a
classless society envisioned by Marx because inequalities are not
product of liberalism but of legacy and racism.
Appeal of communism in the developed western world is lower today
compared to the end of the First World War
Remarkable ideological transformation occurred in Asia imported
western ideology
Liberalism was imported after WWI Japan after fascism opened to
liberalism
Political liberalism has been inevitably following economic liberalism.
China started developing a liberal economic system but cannot be
described as a liberal democracy
Soviet Union Gorbachev leading more towards liberal democracies.
Nobody in USSR believes in Marxist-Leninism any longer.
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Samuel Huntington – the clash of civilization
World politics is entering a new phase the end of history
Return of traditional rivalries between nation states and their decline
Source of conflict WILL NOT BE economic or ideological, but
CULTURAL
Nation states still powerful, conflict will occur between different civilization
CONFLICT BETWEEN CIVILIZATION last phase in the evolution of conflict
in the modern world.
1. Conflict in the western world were largely among monarchs to expand
territory & economic strength.
2. With the French revolution the principal lines of conflict were the
nations, which lasted until WW1
3. With Russian Revolution begin conflicts of ideologies.
Now it is meaningful to group countries according to their level of civilization
and culture.
Civilization is a cultural entity: villages, regions, ethnic groups,
nationalities, religious groups have different levels of cultural
heterogeneity.
Civilization is the highest cultural grouping of people and the broadest
level of cultural identity people have, that distinguish humans from other
species
It is defined by:
o Common objective elements language, history, customs, institution
o Subjective self-identification of people people have levels of identity
A civilization may include several nation-states and they can blend and
overlap
Civilizations are dynamics as they fall, rise, divide, merge, disappear…
WHY WILL CIVILIZATION CLASH?
o Civilizations are different therefore people have different views
and beliefs which can cause a clash
o The world is becoming a smaller place, civilizations are increasing
as well as awareness
o The process of economic modernization and social change
throughout the world are separating people from longstanding
local identities. They weaken nation state as a source of identity
o The growth of civilization-consciousness is enhanced by the dual
role of the west, which is at a peak of power.
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People define their identity in terms of ethnic and religious terms “us vs
them” mentality
West tries to promote democracy & liberalism as universal values
maintain military predominance and economic interests.
CLASH OF CIVILIZATION
MICRO LEVEL MACRO LEVEL
Adjacent groups struggle violently States from different civilization
over the control of territory/each compete for relative military and
other. economic power, struggle over
the control of international
institutions and third parties.
Promoting their particular
political and religious values.
Fault lines between civilization are replacing political and ideological
boundaries of the cold war, which began with Iron Curtain division and ended
with Iron Curtain.
IDEOLOGICAL DIVISION DISAPPEARS WHILE CULTURAL DIVISION
REEMERGES. (Related to religion – Protestant vs Catholic vs Orthodox
vs Islam)
Interactions between civilization can vary and they can also be characterised
by violence ethnic conflicts have been more frequent in groups belonging to
different civilizations.
Group of states belonging to one civilization which are involved in a conflict
tend to support members from their own civilization.
Post-cold war KIN-COUNTRY SYNDROM is replacing political ideology &
traditional balance of power considerations as the principal basis for
cooperation and coalitions.
Phenomenon that groups or states belonging in a war with groups or states
from another civilization will naturally attempt to rally other groups or states
from their own civilization behind their cause.
According to Huntington, the kin-country syndrome will determine alliances
and change relations. So belonging to the same civilization replaces according
to Huntington political ideology and power considerations as important
predictor/basis of cooperation and coalitions.
Clashes involve some elements of civilization rallying, which rise of
importance when the conflict continues.
West is at an extraordinary peak of power in relation to other civilization
military conflict among western state is unthinkable and there is no rivalry.
The “world community” euphemistic collective noun to give global
legitimacy to actions reflecting the interest of US and western powers.
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The west is using international institutions, military power and economic
resources to run the world in ways that will maintain western
predominance, protect western interests and economic values.
The idea that there could be a universal civilization is western idea US and
the west want to induce other people to adopt western ideas concerning
democracy and human rights.
“the west and the rest” Mahbubani (1992) responses of non-western states
to western power and values:
Non-western state can attempt to pursue a course of isolation from
the corruption of the west. Cost is high, just a few states have
pursued isolation ex North Korea
Accept the west, its values, its institutions
Balance the west by developing economic and military power
while cooperating with other non-western societies against the
west
In the future large countries with many people and different civilizations are
more likely to dismemberment.
torn countries some countries have a fair degree of cultural homogeneity
but are divided over whether their society belongs to one civilization or
another. What can a torn country do to define its civilization?
Political and economic elite has to be supportive of and
enthusiastic about it
Its public has to be willing to acquiesce in redefinition
Dominant groups in the recipient civilization have to be willing to
embrace the convert
Western civilization is both west and modern
Non-western civilizations are trying to become modern without being western.
West has to increasingly accommodate the non-western modern civilization,
whose values differ significantly understanding their religion and
philosophical assumption
For the future no universal civilization but a world of different civilizations
that will have to coexist with others.
Week 2
Week 3
