Relying heavily on anthropological methods, Entelis capably dissects the strands that make up the political culture of Morocco. He discerns three core values (Islam, Arabism, and Moroccanism) out of which derive the country's four principal patterns, happily alliterative: monarchism, modernism, militarism, and messianism. Monarchism comes first because, in the author's view, the kingly institution is paramount in Moroccan life. In part this is because it alone includes all three of the country's core values, in part because the throne has closely identified itself with a "Muslim consensus" that includes most of the population.
Looking to the future, Entelis is guardedly optimistic, predicting that Morocco's cultural harmony "may yet enable" it to overcome multiple challenges in a nonviolent manner. In this connection, he notes that a full-fledged counterculture has not emerged and that the state has not often had to rely on coercive force. The first half of the 1990s might see any of five alternate forms of government. Most likely is the continuation of the monarchy; second most likely is a military junta, followed by a liberal democracy, and then a fundamentalist Islamic order. A takeover by leftists is least likely. Whatever transpires, the monarchy's future lies in the success of its domestic policy-the "ability to promote cultural synthesis, adaptive modernization, and incremental democratization." Short of a disastrous defeat in the Western Sahara, foreign relations are likely to remain the king's preserve, and that means continuity in the state's pro-Western outlook.
