Bedah Buku "Civilization and Modernization: What’s The Difference"

Buku : Civilization and Modernization: What’s The Difference
Penulis : Ali Shariati (2006)
Terbitan :Citizens Ali Shariati (2006), International: Penang.

Introduction;

• important issue is the relationship between an imposed modernization & genuine civilization
• modernity has been imposed on us, the non European nations, in the guise of civilization
• for the past 150 yrs, the West has under taken the task of modernizing men with the missionary zeal
• intellectual? Assimilation? Alienation?

Dehumanizing effects of modern factory work

Analogy-factory

• clearly illustrates that in the present system there is not the slightest room for expression of human sentiment
• human becomes like a machine
• “one dimensional man”, “depreciated man” @ “circular man”
• Circular man: who produces for the sake of consumption & consumes for the sake of production

Alienation as a condition of being possessed

Alienation, which affects men through mechanical & dehumanized disciplined, may be caused by bureaucracy & technology

Cultural alienation

• Alienation: indicates a condition in which one does not perceive himself as he is, but rather perceives something else in his place
• Culture: collection of intellectual, non-material artistic, historical, literary, religious & emotional expressions of a nation which have accumulated in the course of its history & acquire unique form
• Artificial factors wipe out any real culture & substitute a false culture for different conditions, different historical stage, different economy, different background, different political & social

Mosaic societies

Mosaic civilization

• Civilization which carry some leftover parts from the past, some deformed parts from Europe & combination of the two produces a half-civilized, half-modernized society
• Formless, no special shape, no goal

Welcome to the machine

Problem

• To make people in Asia & Africa consumers of European products
• Their societies must be structured so they would buy European products

Strategy

• All the people of the world must becomes uniform
• The differences in thinking & spirits of nations of the world must be destroyed in order for men become uniform
• It shows all Easterners, Asians & Africans, how to think, how to dress, how to desire, how to grieve…etc
• New culture-modernization
• eg: a need of automobile in Africa

Effects

• modernization is changing traditions, mode of consumption & material life from old to new

# aktiviti bedah buku yang dijalankan oleh Ummah Aid pada setiap hari Rabu jam 5.30 di Universiti Sains Malaysia. Terbuka kepada semua yang berminat. Jikalau berminat layari http://ummahaid.blogspot.com/