Lecture 1 Outline - Lecture I 23 August What is Western Civilization 1 Definition from Patterns(p vii a very broad term intended to designate the common

Lecture I – 23 August What is Western Civilization? 1. Definition from Patterns (p. vii) – “a very broad term intended to designate the common features of the human cultures that have dominated Europe and been transplanted to the Americas and other parts of the world.” What is Western Civilization? 1. What are some potential problems with the concept of “Western Civilization?” 2. Edward Said and “Orientalism” – Orientalism published in 1978 – Argued that the “West” had used the “East” as a definitional tool, an opposition figure – Not only had the East been used to affirm the West’s view of itself, but the view of the “East” as something different and backward had justified Western imperialism The Four Course Themes Modernity 1. Following Susan Stanford Friedman in “Definitional Excursions: The Meanings of Modern / Modernity / Modernism” 1 we recognize the following problems with the term “modernity:” 1. The Binary 2. The Circle 3. The Metonym 2. Recognizing the difficulties encountered when trying to define modernity, we