Debates on Civilization in the Muslim World ─ Critical Perspectives on Islam and Modernity

In the social sciences, civilization is one of the most oft-debated concepts. However, debates around civilization are still framed by Western assumptions and concerns as with the very idea of civilization itself. Nevertheless, civilization remains a central theme for non-Western theorists, especially in the Muslim world. Since its birth as a concept, civilization has been defined and brought into existence by an encounter with the other. Similarly, Muslim communities have also attempted, in various forms, to place themselves in relation to what they saw as civilization. This encounter with the concept and fact of civilization is comprised of a series of investigations that include multi-dimensional analyses of frameworks of evaluation, methods of interpretation and eventually attempts to go beyond the concept itself. All of these developments contribute to the very concept as understood from different points of view. The book will offer fifteen chapters in three parts: (i) defining and discussing civilization; (ii) debates on the civilization in the contemporary Muslim world; (iii) and modernization, globalization, and the future of civilization debate. The first part reviews, analyze, and discuss definitions of civilization and modernity, and criticizes Eurocentric understanding around these notions. The second part examines efforts at resistance to as well as reception by non-Western civilizations of Western perspectives on civilization. The third part focuses on the future of the debate in a broader context. The overall objective of this volume is to expose complex issues for further discussion pertaining to civilization, modernization, globalization, (de)colonization, and multiculturalism.

Lutfi Sunar is currently assistant professor at Istanbul University Department of Sociology.