The term "civilization" comes with great baggage, as it distinguishes between people, cultures and history as civilized - or not. While the idea of ​​civilization has been propagated through history to justify all kinds of social and political interventions and engineering, few scientists have stopped thinking about the meaning of this concept.

Here, Bret Bodin examines how the idea of ​​civilization has served our thinking about international relations for ten centuries. From the Crusades to the colonial era to the global war on terror, this sweeping volume of civilization reveals that it is a stage play of history that legitimizes imperialism, unification, and conformity with Western norms, culminating in a liberal, global democratic order.

Along the way, Bowden explores the diversity of confrontations and conquests - as well as those peoples and places excluded or drifting - carried out in the name of civilization. To conclude that "the West and the rest" have more than the common denominators of differences, this provocative and attractive book is ultimately the path to a genuine dialogue among civilizations that emphasizes cooperation on clashes..