While [European] national cultures were concocted to distinguish one economic unit of capital from another, civilizational thinking was invented to unify these cultures against their colonial consequences. Islamic, Indian, or African civilizations were invented contrapuntally by Orientalism...in order to match, balance and thus authenticate ‘Western Civilization'. (Hamid Dabashi)

While [European] national cultures were concocted to distinguish one economic unit of capital from another, civilizational thinking was invented to unify these cultures against their colonial consequences. Islamic, Indian, or African civilizations were invented contrapuntally by Orientalism...in order to match, balance and thus authenticate ‘Western Civilization'.

Hamid Dabashi

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african colonial match national order thinking thus unit western while islamic

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