Is “Western Civilization” a Worthwhile Conceptual Framework?

“This exposes a basic problem of the conservative idealization of the Western tradition; it relies on an artificial, if not arbitrary construction that only makes sense in retrospect.”

The idea of Western Civilization is a hot topic these days. It is seemingly a central idea for conservatives and traditionalists, mainly operating under the assumption that it is under threat and needs to be defended. After all, the ideas and values associated with it are at the very foundation of what has made life good in Europe and North America. People on the Left are generally less keen about it. There are several, in my opinion, quite valid, reasons for this. An obvious one is that the term “Western Civilization” is often nothing more than a dog whistle for whiteness and, consequently, a racist trope. There is truth to this claim, and even conservatives who do not use the term in this way would be remiss to ignore this fact. Many conservatives, I believe, use the concept in good faith. But this is certainly not the only criticism. There are also the issues of colonialism and imperialism. It is not just that the West did those things, but the ideas that are often presented as proof of the value of Western Civilization were, in the past, used to justify these troubling practices. This is evident, for example, in the words of British liberal thinkers of the 19th century. Finally, there is the idea that it is all just really a made-up concept. There is no single coherent Western tradition but a series of often conflicting ideas, out of which some won out due to historical contingencies.

Much like nuclear energy can be used to destroy a city or to power it, concepts like reason, liberty, and democracy can be used to justify oppression or to enable emancipation.

My anthropologist friends would certainly take issue with even the idea of using the concept of “civilization,” let alone “western civilization.” I will, however, assume that there is something that may be called Western Civilization, for the purpose of the argument. I will also not address the potentially racist implications of the term. Instead, I will assume that good faith actors on both sides of the political spectrum can agree that, while it is sometimes used in this way (and it should be obviously condemned when it is), there are more benevolent uses of the term. Instead, I want to argue that while critiques of the concept coming from the Left are generally correct, this is no reason to dismiss many of the ideas that are associated with the West. Much like nuclear energy can be used to destroy a city or to power it, concepts like reason, liberty, and democracy can be used to justify oppression or to enable emancipation. This does not mean that the conservative position is correct. On the contrary, my claim is that, while some of the conclusions of the left-wing position are too far-reaching, one of the conservative premises is fundamentally flawed. The central mistake lies in the assumption that we need to defend the cultural ideal in order to save the political and intellectual principles. In fact, it is this attachment that keeps many of these ideas from being fully realized, as exemplified by many of their historical applications beyond their originally limited scopes.

Liberty, democracy, equality, reason, scientific progress: all of these are the ideas that conservatives identify as part of the Western tradition, and what make this conception of society worth defending. On a very surface level, it would appear that all of these are, on balance, mostly positive ideas. Conservatives certainly believe this. One of Ben Shapiro’s chief assertions is that the West is defined by two parallel axes that he proverbially identifies with Jerusalem and Athens: The reason of the Greeks and the morals of the Judeo-Christian tradition. Similarly, Jonah Goldberg lists several key tenets of Western culture that give it its worth. Among these are freedom of conscience, commitment to human rights and democracy, tolerance, and admiration for the scientific method. All of these have certainly had defenders and proponents among the most prominent thinkers of Europe and North America. The Enlightenment is a prime example of these values; German philosopher Immanuel Kant, for example, is a central figure in contemporary human rights theory. Denis Diderot’s Encyclopedia is nothing if not a monument to the admiration of science and reason. John Locke could rightly be considered the father of modern freedom of conscience. John Stuart Mill was one of the most articulate defenders of freedom of speech. So, in the end, there is a certain sense in which all of these ideas can be associated with the Western tradition.