Samuel P. Huntington of Harvard Dies at 81

In expanding the Foreign Affairs article into ”The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order,” Mr. Huntington has thickened out his argument, but it remains controversial. If there are seven or eight world civilizations, he says, the West had better shed the hubristic notion that its civilization is destined to spread its values across the globe. The West is ”unique” — but its values are not universal.

But critics, including Edward W. Said, a Columbia University professor who wrote “Orientalism,” said Mr. Huntington’s theory perpetuates a “West against the rest” mentality.

"Clash of Civilizations" author Samuel Huntington dies
Samuel P. Huntington of Harvard Dies at 81 New York Times
Harvard Crimson - AFP