Civilization

A civilization or civilisation has a variety of meanings related to human society. The term comes from the Latin civis, meaning "citizen" or "townsman."

Problems with the term "civilization"

As discussed above, "civilization" has a number of meanings, and its use can lead to confusion and misunderstanding.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

However, "civilization" can be a highly connotative word. It might bring to mind qualities such as superiority, humaneness, and refinement. Indeed, many members of civilized societies have seen themselves as superior to the "barbarians" outside their civilization.

Related Topics:
Connotative - Barbarian

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Many 19th-century anthropologists backed a theory called cultural evolution. They believed that people naturally progress from a simple state to a superior, civilized state. John Wesley Powell, for example, classified all societies as Savage, Barbarian, and Civilized; the first two of his terms would shock most anthropologists today. The early 20th century saw the first cracks in this worldview within Western Civilization: Joseph Conrad's 1902 novel "Heart of Darkness", for example, told a story set in the Congo Free State, in which the most savage and uncivilized behaviour was initiated by a white European. This hierarchical worldview was dealt further serious blows by the atrocities of World War I and World War II and so on.

Related Topics:
Anthropologists - Cultural evolution - John Wesley Powell - Western Civilization - Joseph Conrad - Heart of Darkness - Congo Free State - Atrocities - World War I - World War II

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Today most social scientists believe at least to some extent in cultural relativism, the view that complex societies are not by nature superior, more humane, or more sophisticated than less complex or technologically advanced groups. This view has its roots in the writings of Franz Boas.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

A minority of scholars reject the relativism of Boas and mainstream social science. English biologist John Baker, in his 1974 book Race, gives about 20 criteria that make civilizations superior to non-civilizations. Baker tries to show a relation between the cultures of civilizations and the biological disposition of their creators.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Many postmodernists, and a considerable proportion of the wider public, argue that the division of societies into 'civilized' and 'uncivilized' is arbitrary and meaningless. On a fundamental level, they say there is no difference between civilizations and tribal societies; that each simply does what it can with the resources it has. In this view, the concept of "civilization" has merely been the justification for colonialism, imperialism, genocide, and coercive acculturation.

Related Topics:
Postmodern - Colonialism - Imperialism - Genocide

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

For all of the above reasons, many scholars today avoid using the term "civilization" as a stand-alone term; they prefer to use urban society or intensive agricultural society, which are much less ambiguous, more neutral-sounding terms. "Civilization," however, remains in common academic use when describing specific societies, such as "Mayan Civilization."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~