The End of Conceit Western Rationality after Postcolonialism

In this radical new book, Patrick Chabal reveals how the future of the West is now inextricably linked to that of the 'non-West'. The environmental issues the world faces as well as the rise of the economic power of China and other Asian countries make it impossible for the West to consider 'what comes next' in the same ways as before. This is an issue which runs far deeper than present debates on the 'decline of the West' might suggest. The book argues that the postcolonial challenge to the West's outlook from regions such as Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East as well as the influence of citizens of non-Western origins now living in the West have combined to expose the limits of 'Western rationality' - the theories and concepts we currently use to understand and act upon the world.Asking such provocative questions as 'is it a good idea to build mosques in Europe?' and 'is Beckham the new black icon?', Chabal explores the growing failure of Western social thought plausibly to explain many of its key domestic social and economic issues, as well as to address crucial contemporary tests of international politics. Ultimately, what the West needs is not more and better theory but an entirely new way of thinking to replace its current deep-seated conceit.

Patrick Chabal is Professor at King's College London.