Threat from Islam to the West

Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer examines the complex relationship between the Islamic and Western worlds. The primary focus looks at the extent to which Islam and the West pose a threat to one another in terms of geo-political conflict. The overall assumption is that the threat posed by Islam to the West, and vice versa is grossly exaggerated. In order to accurately account for this exaggeration the complicated nature of the relationship is examined in detail. In addition, the role of extremist actions on both sides is revealed to show the manner in which threat perception is exaggerated by those with a vested political interest in the perpetuation of such sentiment. The writer notes that it is impossible to view the Islamic and Western worlds as homogeneous political entities. The writer maintains that attempting to offer an assessment based on a "clash of civilisations" is equally misguided.

From the Paper:

"In analytical terms this presents a distinct problem. Nonetheless, for the purposes of consistency and clarity the writer continues to refer to the two specific areas of the globe being discussed here as the Muslim and Western worlds. It is vitally important however to remember that these labels are extremely generalised and cannot be used or considered to represent two mass geometrically opposing blocs. To suggest they do is a flagrant exaggeration. Given therefore the fragmented political and social natures of the two global areas in question, it is incorrect to envisage that they represent an amalgamated threat to one another.
"The perception of a unified threat from Islam to the West is nonetheless an extremely potent one. Often it has led to the belief in some quarters, that being Islamic in an obscure general sense can immediately be correlated with a wish to impose a political system based on a fundamentalist Islamic doctrine, something that transcends national boundaries."

Sample of Sources Used:

• AbuKhalil, As'ad. Bin Laden, Islam, and America's New War on Terrorism. New York: Seven Stories Press, 2002.
• Cooper, Barry. New Political Religions, or An Analysis of Modern Terrorism. Columbia: University of Missouri Press, 2005.
• Esposito, John L. The Islamic Threat. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999.
• Fuller, Graham and Lesser, Ian. A Sense of Siege: The Geopolitics of Islam and the West. Oxford: Westview Press, 1995.
• Gurr, Ted Robert. Why Men Rebel. New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1970.

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