Abstract
In this study, Samuel Huntington's Thesis on the Clash of Civilizations is problematized in the context of Edward Said's interpretation of Orientalism. The reflections of Orientalist thought are analyzed in the Clash of Civilizations Thesis' perspective on identity and culture, in its approach to the societies it classifies as non-Western, and in the information it represents about these societies. As a result of the study, it is aimed to make visible the information constructed in the Clash of Civilizations Thesis with the aim of establishing power over the other, to weaken the discourses that exclude and antagonize the other, and to develop an understanding that will contribute to the strengthening of the experiences of living together within differences. As a method, first a perspective was adopted through Interpretive Social Science, and then the Clash of Civilizations Thesis was subjected to a critical discourse analysis in line with the understanding of Critical Social Science. In order to make Said's interpretation of Orientalism understandable, the relationship of the parts of the interpretation of Orientalism with the whole was examined in depth and the Clash of Civilizations Thesis was subjected to a critical interpretation in line with the created meaning. According to the results obtained, Huntington's Clash of Civilizations Thesis brings together a lot of objective information and Orientalist discourse and strengthens Orientalist discourses with objective information. Thus, in order to ensure the continuity of Western power, an attempt is made to create a hegemonic discourse that is rooted in Orientalism and strengthened by historical hostilities. This situation causes the information Huntington created about other societies to be information polluted by the will to power rather than information created as a result of a careful research based on empathy. Huntington reduces societies to structures that have to fight because of their cultural differences.
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