Individualism, Holism and Self-Conscience in Arab-Muslim Society

Following a socio-linguistic survey of the Arabic terms which can be used to translate the word “individual”, this paper carries out a sociological and anthropological analysis of the concepts of “individual versus society” and “individualism versus holism”, in both Western and Arab-Muslim society. The study shows how the answer to the question of whether the individual exists or not within Arab-Muslim society may be found within the framework of a critical approach to the traditional categories of self-conscience.