The Mistaken Identification of “The West” with “Modernity”

The relationships between Islam and the West are complex. Even the perceptions of those relations have an important impact on the nature of the interactions. If the basic images that are used in discussing “Islam and the West” are themselves ill-defiied or viewed in inconsistent ways, the relations...

Descripción completa

Guardado en:
Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor principal: John Obert Voll
Formato: article
Lenguaje:EN
Publicado: International Institute of Islamic Thought 1996
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://doaj.org/article/64e5b9b9077f49d0b99da1f9b0497c08
Etiquetas: Agregar Etiqueta
Sin Etiquetas, Sea el primero en etiquetar este registro!
id oai:doaj.org-article:64e5b9b9077f49d0b99da1f9b0497c08
record_format dspace
spelling oai:doaj.org-article:64e5b9b9077f49d0b99da1f9b0497c082021-12-02T17:26:08ZThe Mistaken Identification of “The West” with “Modernity”10.35632/ajis.v13i1.23472690-37332690-3741https://doaj.org/article/64e5b9b9077f49d0b99da1f9b0497c081996-04-01T00:00:00Zhttps://www.ajis.org/index.php/ajiss/article/view/2347https://doaj.org/toc/2690-3733https://doaj.org/toc/2690-3741 The relationships between Islam and the West are complex. Even the perceptions of those relations have an important impact on the nature of the interactions. If the basic images that are used in discussing “Islam and the West” are themselves ill-defiied or viewed in inconsistent ways, the relationships themselves are affected in sometimes dangerous ways. Inconsistent and contradictory terms of analysis can lead to misunderstanding and conflict. One of the most frequent conceptual mistakes made in discussing Islam and the West in the modem era is the identification of “the West” with “modemity.” This mistake has a significant impact on the way pee ple view the processes of modernization in the Islamic world as well as on the way people interpret the relationships between Islam and the West in the contemporary era. The basic generalizations resulting from the following analysis can be stated simply: 1) “modernity“ is not uniquely “western”; 2) “the West” is not simply “modernity”; and 3) the identifixation of “the West” with “modemity” has important negative consequences for understanding the relationships between Islam and the West. Modernity and the West are two different concepts and historic entities. To use the terms interchangeably is to invite unnecessary confusion and create possible conflict’and inconsistency. This article will address the problem of definition and the application of the defined terms to interpreting actual experiences and relationships. Understanding the difficulties raised by the identification of the West with modernity involves a broader analysis within the framework of world history and global historical perspectives. In such an analysis, ... John Obert VollInternational Institute of Islamic ThoughtarticleIslamBP1-253ENAmerican Journal of Islam and Society, Vol 13, Iss 1 (1996)
institution DOAJ
collection DOAJ
language EN
topic Islam
BP1-253
spellingShingle Islam
BP1-253
John Obert Voll
The Mistaken Identification of “The West” with “Modernity”
description The relationships between Islam and the West are complex. Even the perceptions of those relations have an important impact on the nature of the interactions. If the basic images that are used in discussing “Islam and the West” are themselves ill-defiied or viewed in inconsistent ways, the relationships themselves are affected in sometimes dangerous ways. Inconsistent and contradictory terms of analysis can lead to misunderstanding and conflict. One of the most frequent conceptual mistakes made in discussing Islam and the West in the modem era is the identification of “the West” with “modemity.” This mistake has a significant impact on the way pee ple view the processes of modernization in the Islamic world as well as on the way people interpret the relationships between Islam and the West in the contemporary era. The basic generalizations resulting from the following analysis can be stated simply: 1) “modernity“ is not uniquely “western”; 2) “the West” is not simply “modernity”; and 3) the identifixation of “the West” with “modemity” has important negative consequences for understanding the relationships between Islam and the West. Modernity and the West are two different concepts and historic entities. To use the terms interchangeably is to invite unnecessary confusion and create possible conflict’and inconsistency. This article will address the problem of definition and the application of the defined terms to interpreting actual experiences and relationships. Understanding the difficulties raised by the identification of the West with modernity involves a broader analysis within the framework of world history and global historical perspectives. In such an analysis, ...
format article
author John Obert Voll
author_facet John Obert Voll
author_sort John Obert Voll
title The Mistaken Identification of “The West” with “Modernity”
title_short The Mistaken Identification of “The West” with “Modernity”
title_full The Mistaken Identification of “The West” with “Modernity”
title_fullStr The Mistaken Identification of “The West” with “Modernity”
title_full_unstemmed The Mistaken Identification of “The West” with “Modernity”
title_sort mistaken identification of “the west” with “modernity”
publisher International Institute of Islamic Thought
publishDate 1996
url https://doaj.org/article/64e5b9b9077f49d0b99da1f9b0497c08
work_keys_str_mv AT johnobertvoll themistakenidentificationofthewestwithmodernity
AT johnobertvoll mistakenidentificationofthewestwithmodernity
_version_ 1718380853619326976