Discourse as a Methodology for Civilization Studies

Discourse is a methodology that yields a new understanding of how the history has developed. The methodology aims to obtain a kind of awareness in a historical study, which cannot be obtained through classical traditions of historical studies. This methodology particularly helps us know the internal course of developments of a civilization and explain the logic of interrelationships between two civilizations. The capacities of discourse studies for research on civilizations are expressed by the focus of discourse on coherence mechanisms of a set, its focus on the logic of correlation and coherence within a system of ideas, individual and collective actions, expressions, techniques leading to the manifestation of social power, and the epistemic background of the set. The capacities may well lead us to undiscovered fields of studying a civilization—fields that are usually overlooked by researchers. This paper aims to, firstly, show the possibility and manner of deploying the discourse in studying the course of development of civilizations, and secondly, show the usefulness of such a study by applying it to a field of study. I will seek to achieve an understanding of the mode of appearance and significance of expressions, actions, and the arrangements of central notions in three main fields of the Islamic civilization, through the application of discourse methodology. The three fields consist in “early Islam,” “Medieval Islam,” and “contemporary Islam.”