An Examination of Realism in Huntington's 'Clash of Civilization'

This essay delves into the concept of realism as presented in Samuel Huntington's "Clash of Civilizations." It examines Huntington's argument that cultural and religious identities will be the primary source of conflict in the post-Cold War era, contrasting with the ideological and economic divisions of the past. The essay outlines the core tenets of realism, particularly classical realism, emphasizing the self-serving nature of states and their leaders, who prioritize national interests and security above all else. It explores how Huntington's thesis aligns with realist principles, highlighting the anarchical nature of the international system and the tendency for conflict to arise from cultural differences. The essay further analyzes Huntington's comparison of industrialized and agricultural societies, showing how differing access to resources and cultural values shape global dynamics and potential conflicts. The conclusion reinforces the idea that Huntington's work reflects realist perspectives on the inherent instability of the world order and the significance of cultural identity in shaping future conflicts.

Running head: REALISM IN “CLASH OF CIVILIZATION”
Realism in “Clash of Civilization”
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1REALISM IN “CLASH OF CIVILIZATION”
Introduction
Books are an important source of the realities prevailing in the surrounding environment.
They make the readers aware of the current structure of the world community and how the
people are behaving in a particular manner (Clark 2019). The purpose of this essay is to
understand the book titled “Clash of Civilization” and how it has reflected the issue of realism in
the world of that time.
Discussion
The book titled “Clash of Civilization” is primarily a research thesis whereby the author,
Samuel Huntington, claimed that the personal identities and their religious affiliations would
lead to the beginning of discord within the human community after the post-Cold War era
(Dunkerley 2017). This thesis was based on the understanding that during the Cold War era, the
world society was divided in to two camps – one which supported the liberal ideology of the
United States of America and the other which provided allegiance to the communist philosophy
of the Soviet Union (Algeriani and Mohadi 2018).
In order to understand the book and the philosophy it has propounded, there is first the
need to understand the significance of the nature of realism. Realism is an international concept
which found its materialistic form in the writings of Waltz (Guzzini 2017). Waltz stated that the
international society is primarily designed to be in a state of perpetual conflict because of the
very nature of the state and the state leaders. Thus, the theory of realism is based on the
foundation that the selfish and self-serving character of the state leaders design the nature of the
country itself (Algeriani and Mohadi 2018). It is the personal identities of the leaders of such

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countries which determine the kind of conflicting stance that a particular country might
undertake within the internal community.
This argument is seen to be persistent within the writing of “Clash of Civilization”. The
author has been able to capture the idea that the individuals of the society are primarily self-
serving in nature (Algeriani and Mohadi 2018). Huntington, in his analysis, has been able to
draw a comparative study between the industrialized world and the agricultural communities. He
stated that the people belonging to the industrialized world had better access to the commodities
and services which led to the increase in the standard of living of the individuals (Siddiqui 2018).
However, in contrast, it can be seen that those inhabitants belonging to the agricultural
communities, did not have such free access. Rather, they were guided by their superstitions and
stories of mythology, originating from their religious doctrines. The emphasis put by them in the
significance of such religious doctrines, ensured the gaining in the cultural identity of such
countries (Huntington 2017).
The branch of realism which finds its base within the reading of “Clash of Civilization”,
is that of classical realism. Waltz opined that the world leaders were mainly anarchical in
orientation (Algeriani and Mohadi 2018). They had the primary objective of attaining their
national interests and objectives. In the course of such an achievement, they did not place much
concern on who was harmed or whose interests had to be forfeited for the pursuance of their own
motives(Algeriani and Mohadi 2018). Thus, this selfish and self-serving nature of the human
kind largely overlooks the need for maintaining humanity and peace I the world.
The book on “Clash of Civilization” is of similar nature. The inherited cultural identity
by a large plethora of nation states in the world would lead to the rise in individual differences
which were already observed by the human society before the dawn of the Cold War era

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(Algeriani and Mohadi 2018). The end of the ideological identifies between the United States of
America and the Soviet Union would lead to a world filled with distraught and chaos. Thus,
Samuel Huntington was of the idea that there is a need to bridge about the gaps existing in the
industrialized world and the agricultural community. With the advent of modernization, such
cultural challenges could be resolved in a peaceful manner.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it can be observed that Huntington tried to capture the realities of the
world within the field of cultural identity. In his book, “Clash of Civilization”, he stated that the
world would go back to the era of ideological differences, giving rise to the conflicts which
would be cultural in nature. This has a strong alignment to the theory of realism which talks
about the anarchical nature of the societies and their tendency to remain in a chaotic world order.

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References:
Algeriani, A.A.A. and Mohadi, M., 2018. Huntington’s Clash of Civilizations and Its Influence
on the US Foreign Policy (an Analytical Study). Journal of Global Business and Social
Entrepreneurship (GBSE), 4(10).
Clark, B., 2019. Fourth Turning Clash of Inter-Civilization Cultures (Doctoral dissertation, T).
Dunkerley, J., 2017. Chaotic epic: Samuel Huntington’s The Clash of Civilizations and the
Remaking of World Order revisited. In American foreign policy. Manchester University Press.
Guzzini, S., 2017. Realist theories and practice.
Huntington, S.P., 2017. Reading 1.3 The Clash of Civilizations?. In Conflict After the Cold
War (pp. 32-51). Routledge.
Siddiqui, F.R., 2018. Clash of Civilizations Thesis: Mega Narratives Versus Local Narratives
and Current Arab Turmoil. Indian Council of World Affairs.