The Idea
This claim argues that Western modernity itself is not innocent of crises, because it can drift into materialism, nihilism, consumerism, and an excessive dependence on technology. It therefore does not become a complete model to be followed without review, but rather an experience that requires scrutiny. The point is not to reject modernity, but to expose what can corrupt it from within.
Concise Formulation
Western modernity, as it drifts into materialism, nihilism, consumerism, and technology:
Its Place in the Book’s Argument
This claim occupies a central place in the book’s argument because it establishes that criticism is not directed at tradition alone. The book calls for a double critique that confronts the closure of fundamentalisms on the one hand, and the reduction of the human being to matter and consumption in Western modernity on the other. In this way, the argument is balanced between criticism of the past and criticism of the present.
Why It Matters
The importance of this claim lies in the fact that it prevents a one-sided reading that locates the problem on only one side. It makes clear that Arkoun does not oppose modernity from a position of rejection, but from a position that calls for its ethical and epistemological refinement. This claim therefore helps show that his project is at once critical and reformist.
Brief Evidence
This claim argues that Western modernity itself is not innocent of crises, because it can drift into materialism, nihilism, consumerism, and an excessive dependence on technology. It therefore does not become a complete model to be followed without review, but rather an experience that requires scrutiny. The point is not to reject modernity, but to expose what can corrupt it from within.
Reading Questions
- What does it mean for modernity to drift into materialism, nihilism, and consumerism?
- How does the text balance criticism of fundamentalism and criticism of Western modernity?
Degree of Documentation
High: the claim appears in a clear location within the book’s material.