Analysis Of S.N.Eisenstadt’s Theory Of Multiple Modernity And Islamic Fundamentalism

Islamic fundamentalism has gradually become a force that cannot be ignored in the international community in recent years. It is imperative to give Islamic fundamentalism a recognition and evaluation facing its tendency of restoration.Having made a profound comparative analysis about the civilizations that are inside and outside of the axial age, S. N. Eisenstadtand put forward the idea of "multiple modernity" within the framework of "structure-culture". In the background of the tensions between the transcend order and the secular order, S. N. Eisenstadt presented a distinctive idea that is different from other scholars. When catching the sight of civilization diversification, he realized that the modernity was also diversified too, then he held a point of view that the modernity was not "simplified" and "westernized", but "unique","diversified" and "dynamic". Therefore, modernity was a process of constant reinterpretation and reconstruction. Regarding the Islamic fundamentalism, he based it on the native Islamic culture; he viewed it as a reflection of modernity and an indispensable part of the diverse modern mode.Based on tidying and analyzing "pluralistic modernity" and Islamic fundamentalism, we can find the causes of Islamic fundamentalism from the "uma" ideal and the separatist, seek the characteristics of Islamic fundamentalism from the restorationism, and then make an analysis about the relation between the generality and particularity of the Islamic fundamentalism as a kind of modernization pattern. After putting S. N. Eisenstadt’s theory in order, it is necessary to reflect the premise of "multiple modernity", discuss the correspondence between the civilization and modernity, and explore the Islamic fundamentalism from a positive aspect. It can be considered as a reflection of modernity, a bridge over the picture of transcend and the temporal order and a social ideological trend of nationalism.