As depicted by Malik, twentieth-century anthropological thought mistakenly divided humanity into integrated, holistic cultures that must be understood as static; such cultures must not be tampered with, since the nature of their harmonious functioning requires that they must "survive intact." (page 156). Malik sees this tendency in anthropology as another expression, along with the idea of race, of "a particularist, relativist, and anti-humanist philosophy" that has rejected Enlightenment universalism. (page 7) He opposes the "politics of difference" – the identification of competing social groups based on shared history and a sense of identity – believing it sets back the struggle for political and economic equality. The final chapters of "The Meaning of Race" contain a critique of postmodernist and poststructuralist theories, including the views of Edward Said. Here, Malik argues that such theories misinterpret the relationship between the West and other cultures, and are detrimental to the possibility of social equality. In its essence, Malik argues, postmodernism is defeatist – it is prepared to accept a place for marginalised groups within society without demanding true equality.