---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The question really is what will be the…"
description: "\"The question really is what will be the central focus of global politics in the coming decades and my argument is that cultural identities and cultural..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef5/samuel-p-huntington-4547_affiliation_the-question-really-is-what-will-be-the_513281.png"
---

#  The question really is what will be the central focus of…

![“The question really is what will be the central focus of global politics in the coming decades and my argument is that cultural identities and cultural antagonisms and affiliations will play not the only role but a major role.” quote by Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef5/samuel-p-huntington-4547_affiliation_the-question-really-is-what-will-be-the_513281.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef5/samuel-p-huntington-4547_affiliation_the-question-really-is-what-will-be-the_513281.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef5/samuel-p-huntington-4547_affiliation_the-question-really-is-what-will-be-the_513281.png)

> “The question really is what will be the central focus of global politics in the coming decades and my argument is that cultural identities and cultural antagonisms and affiliations will play not the only role but a major role.”

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Cultural identities and their conflicts will dominate global politics in future decades.

**In simple terms:** Culture will shape future politics.

Key Takeaway

Study cultural dynamics.

Themes

politics culture identity conflict

Mood

analytical serious

Type

academic political

When to use this quote

- policy analysis
- diplomacy training
- conflict resolution workshops

Key Concepts

Nationalism globalization cultural antagonism

Questions to Reflect On

- How will culture influence policy?
- What role will economics play?

A Different Perspective

Economic factors may also be decisive.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Antagonism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/antagonism/) [Argument](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/argument/) [Cultural identity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cultural-identity/) [Focus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/focus/) [Identity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identity/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/)

## Related quotes

> [I consider myself West African, among other cultural identities, and a writer, among other creative ones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taiye-selasi/i-consider-myself-west-african-among-other-cultural-identities-and-a/)

[Taiye Selasi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taiye-selasi/)

> [In the coming decades, questions of identity, meaning cultural heritage, language, and religion will play a central role in politics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/in-the-coming-decades-questions-of-identity-meaning-cultural-heritage/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [Quite obviously power will continue to play a central role in global politics as it always does. But usually there is something else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/quite-obviously-power-will-continue-to-play-a-central-role-in-global/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [“It is my hypothesis that the fundamental source of conflict in this new world will not be primarily ideological or primarily economic. The great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/it-is-my-hypothesis-that-the-fundamental-source-of-conflict-in-this/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [Global politics remains extremely complex and countries have different interests, which will also lead them to make what might seem as rather bizarre friends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/global-politics-remains-extremely-complex-and-countries-have/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [Tribalism reflects strong ethnic or cultural identities that separate members of one group from another, making them loyal to people like them and suspicious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosabeth-moss-kanter/tribalism-reflects-strong-ethnic-or-cultural-identities-that-separate/)

[Rosabeth Moss Kanter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosabeth-moss-kanter/)

> [“The space of difference became now something exclusively cultural. In order for us to perceive political differences and divisions and to recognize them as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/slavoj-i-ek/the-space-of-difference-became-now-something-exclusively-cultural-in/)

[Slavoj Žižek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/slavoj-i-ek/)

> [But at the end of the day, I want people to say that I played a major role in restoring people's confidence in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-hochul/but-at-the-end-of-the-day-i-want-people-to-say-that-i-played-a-major/)

[Kathy Hochul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-hochul/)

> [I think the major role of the First Lady is to take care of the President so that he can best serve the people.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-kennedy/i-think-the-major-role-of-the-first-lady-is-to-take-care-of-the/)

[Jackie Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-kennedy/)

> [Bio-Technology is expected to play a major role in improving productivity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-anwar/bio-technology-is-expected-to-play-a-major-role-in-improving/)

[Tariq Anwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-anwar/)

> [My first major role was in a play called 'Through the Leaves.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-stott/my-first-major-role-was-in-a-play-called-through-the-leaves/)

[Ken Stott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-stott/)

> [If something substantial comes my way - a very meaty and major role - which I would love to do, then of course one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirron-kher/if-something-substantial-comes-my-way-a-very-meaty-and-major-role/)

[Kirron Kher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirron-kher/)

> [What you do off the job plays a major role in how far you go on the job. How many good books, do you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zig-ziglar/what-you-do-off-the-job-plays-a-major-role-in-how-far-you-go-on-the/)

[Zig Ziglar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zig-ziglar/)

> [The U.S. people have a major role to play to solve, to save this planet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugo-chavez/the-u-s-people-have-a-major-role-to-play-to-solve-to-save-this-planet/)

[Hugo Chavez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugo-chavez/)

> [But I definitely see us playing a major role in St. Louis in the years to come. We already provide service to 95 percent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-arpey/but-i-definitely-see-us-playing-a-major-role-in-st-louis-in-the-years/)

[Gerard Arpey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-arpey/)

## More by Samuel P. Huntington

> [Countries will cooperate with each other, and are more likely to cooperate with each other when they share a common culture, as is most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/countries-will-cooperate-with-each-other-and-are-more-likely-to/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [“The prevalence of anti-patriotic attitudes among liberal intellectuals led some of them to warn their fellow liberals of the consequences of such attitudes for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/the-prevalence-of-anti-patriotic-attitudes-among-liberal/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [Also, of course, for most of this time most Americans thought of America as a white country with, at best, only a very segregated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/also-of-course-for-most-of-this-time-most-americans-thought-of/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [These transnationalists have little need for national loyalty, view national boundaries as obstacles that thankfully are vanishing, and see national governments as residues from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/these-transnationalists-have-little-need-for-national-loyalty-view/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [Civilizations evolve over time, and most scholars of civilization, including people like Carol Quigley, argue that they go through periods of warring states, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/civilizations-evolve-over-time-and-most-scholars-of-civilization/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [First of all, we haven't always welcomed immigrants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/first-of-all-we-haven-t-always-welcomed-immigrants/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [Hispanics speak Spanish or Portuguese, which are languages we Americans are familiar with, so it doesn't seem to pose the same types of problems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/hispanics-speak-spanish-or-portuguese-which-are-languages-we/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [Israel has military capabilities including nuclear weapons, far surpassing any other power in the Middle East, but it's a small country. The rest of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/israel-has-military-capabilities-including-nuclear-weapons-far/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [America doesn't border on Muslim countries. European countries do and that seems to be a fundamental difference.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/america-doesn-t-border-on-muslim-countries-european-countries-do-and/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [Except under rare circumstances, I don't write responses to criticism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/except-under-rare-circumstances-i-don-t-write-responses-to-criticism/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [Religiosity distinguishes America from most other Western societies. Americans are also overwhelmingly Christian, which distinguishes them from many non-Western peoples. Their religiosity leads Americans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/religiosity-distinguishes-america-from-most-other-western-societies/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [Both sides are divided and Western countries collaborate with Muslim countries and vice versa.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/both-sides-are-divided-and-western-countries-collaborate-with-muslim/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [ Some Westerners \[…\] have argued that the West does not have problems with Islam but only with violent Islamist extremists. Fourteen hundred years of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/some-westerners-have-argued-that-the-west-does-not-have-problems-with/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [What are the prospects for an Arab state serving a leading role comparable to the role that other states place in other regions? There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/what-are-the-prospects-for-an-arab-state-serving-a-leading-role/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

> [Obviously there are divisions within the West and divisions within Islam - there are different sects, different communities, different countries. So neither one is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/obviously-there-are-divisions-within-the-west-and-divisions-within/)

[Samuel P. Huntington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

[Explore all 109 Samuel P. Huntington quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/)

## More Affiliation quotes

> [My goal has been to encourage jointness, to push people to think of affiliations rather than to operate as solo entrepreneurs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-bartlett-giamatti/my-goal-has-been-to-encourage-jointness-to-push-people-to-think-of/)

[A. Bartlett Giamatti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-bartlett-giamatti/)

> [The time has come to make the protection of children - all our children - a common cause that can unite us across the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olara-otunnu/the-time-has-come-to-make-the-protection-of-children-all-our-children/)

Olara Otunnu

> [Of course, peer pressure has a strong positive component. It provides the social cohesion that allows the very development of communal affiliation. But peer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-d-hayes/of-course-peer-pressure-has-a-strong-positive-component-it-provides/)

Charles D. Hayes

> [ It is different \[to perform in Israel\] because it arises from very deep wells of affiliation. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/it-is-different-to-perform-in-israel-because-it-arises-from-very-deep/)

[Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/)

> [We shall say clearly that any symbol conspicuously displaying religious affiliation in school is prohibited.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-pierre-raffarin/we-shall-say-clearly-that-any-symbol-conspicuously-displaying/)

[Jean-Pierre Raffarin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-pierre-raffarin/)

> [Your race and gender don't change, but you can choose to change your political affiliation at will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-podhoretz/your-race-and-gender-don-t-change-but-you-can-choose-to-change-your/)

[John Podhoretz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-podhoretz/)

> [“When only one party makes a profit that's robbery when all parties make profit that's business.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/when-only-one-party-makes-a-profit-that-s-robbery-when-all-parties/)

[Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/)

> [History will not judge our endeavors--and a government cannot be selected--merely on the basis of color or creed or even party affiliation. Neither will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/history-will-not-judge-our-endeavors-and-a-government-cannot-be/)

[John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/)

> [To be motivated to sit at home and study, instead of going out and playing, children need a sense of themselves over time--they need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-greenspan/to-be-motivated-to-sit-at-home-and-study-instead-of-going-out-and/)

[Stanley Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-greenspan/)

> [The Night Manager doesn't exist in the post-Cold war universe, it exists much more in the modern world, I think. There is more action.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hiddleston/the-night-manager-doesn-t-exist-in-the-post-cold-war-universe-it/)

[Tom Hiddleston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hiddleston/)

> [I would describe my spirituality as exactly the opposite of having a religious affiliation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-maher/i-would-describe-my-spirituality-as-exactly-the-opposite-of-having-a/)

[Bill Maher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-maher/)

> [Touch seems to be such an important tool for enhancing social cooperation and affiliation that we have evolved a special physical route along which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-mlodinow/touch-seems-to-be-such-an-important-tool-for-enhancing-social/)

[Leonard Mlodinow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-mlodinow/)

> [The writer is the person who stands outside society, independent of affiliation and independent of influence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/the-writer-is-the-person-who-stands-outside-society-independent-of/)

[Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/)

> [Since the moment of the United Nations' inception, untold energies have been expended by governments not only toward the exclusion of persons of principle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-hazzard/since-the-moment-of-the-united-nations-inception-untold-energies-have/)

[Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/)

> [The behavior of an individual is determined not by his racial affiliation, but by the character of his ancestry and his cultural environment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-boas/the-behavior-of-an-individual-is-determined-not-by-his-racial/)

[Franz Boas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-boas/)

Browse all 100 Affiliation quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "The question really is what will be the central focus of global politics in the coming decades and my argument is that cultural identities and cultural antagonisms and affiliations will play not the only role but a major role.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Samuel P. Huntington"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/the-question-really-is-what-will-be-the-central-focus-of-global/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Affiliation"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/the-question-really-is-what-will-be-the-central-focus-of-global/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef5/samuel-p-huntington-4547_affiliation_the-question-really-is-what-will-be-the_513281.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef5/samuel-p-huntington-4547_affiliation_the-question-really-is-what-will-be-the_513281.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef5/samuel-p-huntington-4547_affiliation_the-question-really-is-what-will-be-the_513281.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The question really is what will be the central focus of global politics in the coming decades and my…” — Samuel P. Huntington",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Samuel P. Huntington",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-p-huntington/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "The question really is what will...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/the-question-really-is-what-will-be-the-central-focus-of-global/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-p-huntington/the-question-really-is-what-will-be-the-central-focus-of-global/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
