1.2 Dualism as Civilizational Engine

Opposition as Foundation: How Conflict Shaped the West

Western civilization has never been ideologically singular. It has always defined itself not by consensus, but by contest. Its major transformations, political, spiritual, cultural, have emerged not from unity, but from struggle between opposing worldviews. This ongoing friction, this dynamic of opposition, is what gives Western history its distinctive energy. Call it ideological dualism: the condition in which two competing frameworks vie for moral authority over society.