Abdulwahab al Masseri

There is a view that imperialism, as a historical practice, constitutes a deviation from western civilization and its conception of the universe, and that the adoption of the imperialist solution, which involves exporting problems to the rest of the world and hegemony over other nations, is inconsistent with being a liberal, humane, and enlightened civilization that has accepted democracy as philosophy of government, laissez-faire as its economic order, and rationalism and humanism as universal philosophy. It is our contention, however, that these varied philosophies do not stand in contradiction to the imperialist epistemological vision. Rather, there is a close link between these philosophies and the imperialist vision, which will be fully understood once we turn to the epistemological level. In order to be aware of such a link, it has to be recognized that all of these philosophies are secular in nature, in the sense that they do not admit of any philosophical system outside the domain of the materialistic order.

In our view, secularism is not a separation between religion and the state, as propagated in both western and Arab writings. Rather, it is the removal of absolute values-epistemological and ethical-from the world such that the entire world-humanity and nature- alike-becomes merely a utilitarian object to be utilized and subjugated. From this standpoint, we can see the structural similarity between the secular epistemological vision and the imperialist epistemological vision. We can also realize that imperialism is no more than the exporting of a secular epistemological and ethical paradigm from the western world, where it first emerged, to the rest of the world.

Factors behind the Emergence of the Imperialist Epistemological Vision

The following factors constitute the underlying reasons for the emergence of the imperialist epistemological vision and its effects:

First: Ever Since the Renaissance, materialistic secular philosophies have incrased their hegemony over the western mind. The Westerner has claimed that God does not exist or that He is, in fact, dead. If He does exist He has nothing to do with epistemological processes and ethical control. The Westerner has also announced that nature is no more than matter subject to laws of motion and that it is capable of being defined, measured, classified, invaded, utilized, and subjugated. This is the essence of humanistic thought. Furthermore, humanity itself is part of nature, of this material world, and, as a material unit, human beings can be transported, used, and pressed into service for generating energy. In this, human beings are defined as producer and consumer, seller and buyer, invader and invaded, dominator and dominated, as well as conquerer and conquered. That humanity differs from nature in that they are able to dominate and control it means that humanity is, in the final analysis, part of it. This is what is called, in this context, the "normalization" process by which humanity becomes an integral-indeed organic-part of nature with no distinctive standing or status. Human desires are part of nature or matter. Such beliefs or concepts became widespread and deeply rooted as rational utilitarian philosophies held increasing sway during the eighteenth century.

Second: The increase in the hegemony of materialist philosophies has been accompanied by a disregard of ethics, which are considered both immaterial and unquantifiable. Ethics have become synonymous with benefit and enjoyment, and the purpose of life is to find this benefit and enjoyment as well as to increase production and profit. Such purposes are characterized by being materialistically quantifiable and, indeed, measurable and as having nothing to do with the transcendental or spiritual. Furthermore, ethics have lost all absoluteness and are reduced to relative social facts attributable, in their entirety, to materialistic toots. Indeed, attempts have been made by utilitarian philosophies to establish ethics based on scientific laws and accurate mathematical calculations.

Third: Political science in the West, particularly in the cases of Machiavelli and Hobbs and following the increase in the secularization of political theory, used to emphasize that the human being's existence has neither ultimate objectives nor absolute goals. Rather, the good was interpreted as that which was in the highest interest of the state. But if enjoyment (as defined by the utilitarian ethical theory) is the end behind individual’s existence, and serving the state’s interest (as defined by the political theory) is behind collective existence, then any increase in, and the sheer expansion of, production becomes the absolute good and the means to reach the earthly paradise. In this way, the state acquires its weapons and humanity increases its material gain or enjoyment. There is no question that a capitalist economy, founded as it is on production, increasing production, and dominating markets, has contributed to entrenching this vision and rendering it an integral part of the acquisitive European’s conception of human nature.

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