Civilization: “It Means Just What I Choose It to Mean”

• Published in: Society (New Brunswick) Vol. 54; no. 2; pp. 126 - 132
• Main Author: Bowden, Brett
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.04.2017; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Academic Achievement; Analysis; Civilization; Colonialism; Culture; Ethics; Foreign Policy; Fundamental Concepts; History; Political Science; Postcolonialism; Social Sciences; Sociology; Symposium: Civilization and Its New Discontents; Western Civilization; World History; New York; United States > US; Civilization; Anti-colonialism; Colonialism; Barbarism; Norms; Savagery; Ideas

Civilization is a complex and powerful word and idea that should neither be reviled nor revered, but it should be respected. It is said that the idea of civilization can be used simply to describe; but as a binary term, the ideal of civilization can be used to both to describe and evaluate; or pass...