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Royal Holloway, University of London

 

Department of Politics and International Relations

 

PR  1450           Introduction to Globalization

 

Taught by:  Chris Rumford and Hasan Turunc

 

Overview

The meaning and causes of globalization are highly contested. Some thinkers hold that it is the logical outcome of capitalism and the development of world markets, or the result of information technologies with transformative implications for state, society and the individual. Others argue that it is the outcome of long-term processes through which the world has become shaped by certain cultural norms, or by the diffusion of rational models of societal organization leading to something akin to a world polity.

 

The position taken here is that globalization is best approached as a multi-dimensional process, or series of processes, which has economic, political, and cultural dimensions. In most straightforward terms, and bearing in mind the previous sentence, globalization is best thought of as the increasing interconnectedness of the world (the world becoming a single place), coupled with the realization that this is the case. Importantly, this approach to globalization sees it not simply as an objective process but one with a strong cognitive dimension: our awareness of the world as a single place is both a consequence of globalization, and in turn contributes to the process of globalization.

 

Aims of course:

·        To provide an overview of key perspectives in the study of globalization

·        To outline the processes contributing to globalization in the contemporary world

·        To introduce the range of questions, issues and debates which shape this area of academic inquiry

·        To outline ways in which the study of globalization has shaped the social scientific imagination in recent years

·        To provide an intellectually stimulating course which will prepare students for a critical engagement with contemporary debates on globalization.

 

 

Upon successful completion of the course students will:

  • have arrived at an understanding of the major processes contributing to globalization
  • be able to assess critically a number of major theories of globalization
  • be able to identify the sources of major political transformations in the contemporary world
  • be able to evaluate the extent to which the world is becoming connected as a single place

 

Assessment

Formal assessment will be by unseen examination (3 hours). In addition, students are required to complete three essays of between 1,500 – 2,000 words. For essay topics see page 3 of this document.

 

Essay deadlines         Monday 12th November 2007 at 12 noon

                                    Monday 21st January 2008 at 12 noon

                                    Monday 25th February 2008 at 12 noon

 

NB. Essays must be handed into your seminar leader and submitted electronically via the Turnitin system.

Online resources

Students are encouraged to familiarise themselves with the material available on the following webpages:

Frank Lechner’s Globalization webpage: http://www.emory.edu/SOC/globalization/index.html

Global Transformations: http://www.polity.co.uk/global/

Chris Rumford’s webpage: http://www.chrisrumford.org.uk/plate_noticeboard.html

 

Course outline:

 

Week 1           Introduction: globalization – myths and realities (powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week 2           Political globalization (Political Globalization, Gerard Delanty and Chris Rumford, download as word file here or PDF file here, and Political Globalization, powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week 3           Economic globalization (powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week 4           Cultural globalization (powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week 5           Theories of globalization I: the world as market place (powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week 6           Theories of globalization II: historical perspectives (powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week 7           Theories of globalization III: global interconnectedness (powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week 8           Globalization and the nation-state (powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week 9           Globalization and democracy (powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week 10         Global civil society (powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week 11         Globalization and sport (powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week 12         Environment and ‘world risk society’ (powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week 13         Global terrorism Confronting “uncivil society” and the “dark side of globalization”: are sociological concepts up to the task? Chris Rumford (download as word file here or PDF file here) (powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week  14        Global governance (powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week 15         Americanization (powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week 16         Identity and belonging (powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week 17         Globalization and borders (powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week 18         Cosmopolitanism (powerpoint presentation here)

 

Week 19         Course review

 

Week 20         Course review

           

 

 

Essential reading:

Ritzer, G. (ed) 2007: The Blackwell Companion to Globalization. (Blackwell)

Robertson, R. and Scholte, J. (eds) 2007: Encyclopedia of Globalization (Volumes 1-4) (Routledge)  330.903 (oversize)

Scholte, J. A. 2000: Globalization: A Critical Introduction (Palgrave)  330.9 SCH

Held, D. et al 1999: Global Transformations: Politics, Economics and Culture (Polity)   330.9 GLO

Holton, R. 1998: Globalization and the nation-state. (Palgrave)  382.1 HOL

Lechner, F. and Boli, J. 2005: World Culture: Origins and Consequences (Blackwell)  301.2

Waters, M. 1995: Globalization. (Routledge)  301.2 WAT

Lechner, F. and Boli, J. (eds) 2004: The Globalization Reader (2nd ed) (Blackwell)  330.9 GLO

Dicken P, 2003: Global Shift: Reshaping the Global Economic Map in the C21st (Sage)

338.09 DIC

 

Essay questions

 

  1. In what ways does the study of globalization pose a challenge to political science and/or  IR?

 

  1. “You can’t have political globalization without global political issues”. Discuss.

 

  1. What are the strengths and weaknesses of economic interpretations of globalization?

 

  1. “It is culture rather than the economy that drives globalization”. Discuss.

 

  1. Can World Systems Theory still make a major contribution to debates on globalization?

 

  1. When did globalization begin?

 

  1. Has globalization led to ‘network society’?

 

  1. Is globalization a threat to the nation-state?

 

  1. Has globalization spread democracy around the world?

 

  1. What evidence is there for the existence of global civil society?

 

  1. ‘Sport is a key element of cultural globalization’. Discuss.

 

  1. What are the strengths and weaknesses of Beck’s ‘risk society’ thesis?

 

  1. “Global terrorism is the ‘dark side’ of globalization”. Discuss.

 

  1. Is it meaningful to talk of global governance?

 

  1. “Globalization is another name for Americanization”. Discuss.

 

  1. What has been the impact of globalization on identity politics?

 

  1. Globalization has led not to a ‘borderless world’ but to a proliferation of borders’. Discuss.

 

  1. What is the relationship between globalization and cosmopolitanism?

 

Detailed course content and reading list

 

Week 1           Introduction: globalization – myths and realities

What is globalization, and why is it seen as so important in the study of politics and international relations? This introductory lecture will explain what we mean by globalization, what is global about contemporary politics, and how globalization is changing the way we think about politics. The lecture will also dispel some myths about globalization: that it only refers to economic processes, for example, or that it is a recent phenomenon.

 

Robertson, R. and White, K. 2007: ‘What is globalization?’ in G. Ritzer (ed) The Blackwell Companion to Globalization. Oxford: Blackwell.

Scholte, J. A. 2005: Globalization: A Critical Introduction 2nd Edition . Houndmills: Palgrave     (esp. ‘Introduction’, and Part 1)  330.9 SCH 

Held, D., McGrew, A., Goldblatt, D., and Perraton, J. 1999: Global Transformations: Politics, Economics and Culture. Cambridge: Polity   330.9 GLO

Robertson, R. 2001: "Globalization theory 2000+ : major problematics," in G. Ritzer and B. Smart (eds), Handbook of Social Theory. London: Sage   301.01 HAN

Axford, B. 2000: "Globalization," in G. Browning, A. Halcli, and F. Webster (eds) Understanding Contemporary Society. London: Sage.  301 UND

Robins, K. 1997: “What in the world’s going on?” in P. du Gay (ed) Production of Culture/Cultures of Production. London: Sage   301.2 PRO

MacGillivray, A. 2006: A Brief History of Globalization. London: Robinson

Stiglitz, J. 2004:  Globalization and Its Discontents. Penguin 338.9 STI

Bhagwati, J. 2004: In Defence of Globalization. Oxford: Oxford University Press  338.9 BHA

 

 

Week 2           Political globalization

Globalization is best viewed as a complex series of interconnected processes; economic, social, political, organizational.  This lecture will focus on both the extent to which politics is instrumental in driving globalization, and the ways in which processes of globalization impact upon politics. For example, there is much debate on the extent to which the nation-state retains its primacy in a globalizing world. Do new forms of global politics exist beyond the realm of conventional international relations?

 

Delanty, G. and Rumford, C. 2007:  “Political globalization” in in G. Ritzer (ed) The Blackwell Companion to Globalization. Oxford: Blackwell

McGrew, A. 2005: ‘Globalization and global politics’ in J. Baylis and S. Smith (eds) The Globalization of World Politics. Oxford: Oxford University Press  327 GLO

Held, D. and McGrew, A. 2003: The Global Transformations Reader: an Introduction to the Globalization Debate (esp. Part 1) Cambridge: Polity Press 327 GLO

Lechner, F. and Boli, J. (eds) 2004: The Globalization Reader (Second Edition) Oxford: Blackwell 330.9 GLO

Scholte, J. A. 2000: Globalization: A Critical Introduction (Palgrave) (esp. Part 1)  330.9 SCH

 

 

Week 3           Economic globalization

It is frequently assumed that globalization is driven by economic forces, and that globalization is synonymous with capitalism. To what extent is this an accurate portrayal of globalization? As students of politics and international relations it will be more productive to develop a multi-dimensional and multi-causal approach to globalization. In doing so we will examine some problems associated with relying upon economistic interpretations of globalization. It will also be necessary to investigate why so many leading theorists of globalization eschew economic explanations (and why others prefer them).

 

Scholte, J. A. 2000: Globalization: a Critical Introduction 2nd Edition Houndmills: Palgrave (esp. Chapter 5)   327 SCH

Dicken, P. 2007: ‘Economic globalization’ in G. Ritzer (ed) The Blackwell Companion to Globalization. Oxford: Blackwell

Dicken, P. 2004: Global Shift: Re-Shaping the Global Economic Map in the 21st Century Fourth Edition. London: Sage (esp. Part 1)  338.09 DIC 

Held, D. and McGrew, A. 2003: The Global Transformations Reader: an Introduction to the Globalization Debate (esp. Part IV) Cambridge: Polity Press 327 GLO

Held, D. and McGrew, A. 2002: Governing Globalization: Power, Authority and Global Governance Cambridge: Polity Press  327.1 GOV

Lechner, F. and Boli, J. (eds) 2004: The Globalization Reader (Second Edition) Oxford: Blackwell (esp. Part IV)  330.9 GLO

Stiglitz, J. 2004:  Globalization and Its Discontents. Penguin 338.9 STI

Bhagwati, J. 2004: In Defence of Globalization. Oxford: Oxford University Press  338.9 BHA

 

 

Week 4           Cultural globalization

Some of the most influential accounts of globalization have emphasised its cultural dimensions, and in particular the emergence of modern forms of global culture (the universality of human rights, or an awareness of the fragility of the natural environment, for example). Contrary to expectations perhaps, the dissemination of cultural norms can be seen as a major driver of globalization, and a key element in the making of the world as a single place.

 

Tomlinson, J. 2007: ‘Cultural globalization’ in G. Ritzer (ed) The Blackwell Companion to Globalization. Oxford: Blackwell

Robertson, R 1992: Globalization: Social Theory and Global Culture London: Sage 301.2 ROB

Lechner, F. and Boli, J. World Culture: Origins and Consequences (esp. Chapters 1, 2, and 3) Oxford: Blackwell  301.2 LEC

Robertson, R. 2001: "Globalization theory 2000 :+ major problematics," in G. Ritzer and B. Smart (eds), Handbook of Social Theory. London: Sage  301.01 HAN

Meyer, J.W., Boli, J., Thomas, G., and Ramirez, F. 2004: “World society and the nation-state” in  F. Lechner and J. Boli (eds) 20004: The Globalization Reader (Second Edition) Oxford: Blackwell  330.9 GLO

Boli, J. and Thomas, G. 2003: ”INGOs and the organization of world culture” in R. Robertson and K. White (eds) Globalization: Critical Concepts Vol IV. London: Routledge 327 GLO (short loan)

Boli, J. and Thomas, G.M. 1999: Constructing World Culture: International Nongovernmental Organizations since 1875 Stanford, Ca.: Stanford University Press.  327.17 CON

 

 

Week 5           Theories of globalization I: the world as market place

The contemporary preference for seeing the world as a single capitalist system has a significant provenance. Back in the 1970s, World Systems Theory set the agenda for economistic readings of globalization, being founded upon a neo-Marxist attempt to place capitalist expansion in a global context. World Systems Theory attempts to explain both the spread of the capitalist system across the globe (a process which has been in operation for at least five hundred years) and also the major inequalities between the west and the rest.

 

Held, D. and McGrew, A. 2003: The Global Transformations Reader: an Introduction to the Globalization Debate (esp. Part IV) Cambridge: Polity Press  327 GLO

Robinson, W. 2007: ‘Theories of globalization’ in G. Ritzer (ed) The Blackwell Companion to Globalization. Oxford: Blackwell

Wallerstein, I. (2003) ‘The Rise And Future Demise Of The World Capitalist System’ in  F. Lechner and J. Boli (eds) 2004: The Globalization Reader (Second Edition) Oxford: Blackwell  330.9 GLO

Dicken, P. 2004: Global Shift: Re-Shaping the Global Economic Map in the 21st Century Fourth Edition. London: Sage (esp. Part IV)  338.09 DIC

Wallerstein, I. (1991) Geopolitics and Geoculture: Essays on the changing world-system. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press).  911 WAL

Axford, B. 1995: The Global System: Economics, Politics and Culture. Cambridge: Polity Press (esp. Chap. 2) 338.9 AXF

Chase-Dunn, C. 1999: “Globalization: a world-system perspective” Journal of World-System Reeseach Vol V No 2

http://jwsr.ucr.edu/archive/vol5/number2/html/chase-dunn/index.shtml

Hopkins, T. and Wallerstein, I. 1982: World-systems analysis:  theory and methodology. London: Sage.        330.9 HOP

Lechner, F. and Boli, J. World Culture: Origins and Consequences (esp. Chapter 2) Oxford: Blackwell   301.2 LEC

Held, D., McGrew, A., Goldblatt, D., and Perraton, J. 1999: Global Transformations: Politics, Economics and Culture. Cambridge: Polity  (esp. Chapter 3)  330.9 GLO

 

 

Week 6           Theories of globalization II: historical perspectives

When did globalization begin? Is it a recent phenomenon, or does it have a much longer history? Roland Robertson, one of the leading figures in the development of cultural (ie. non-economistic) interpretations of globalization, has argued that the interconnectedness of the world has developed over a millennium or more. We will focus on Robertson’s historical schema for globalization and compare his approach with that of other theorists who argue that globalization has a long and complex history.

 

Robertson, R 1992: Globalization: Social Theory and Global Culture London: Sage 301.2 ROB

Robertson, R. 1990: “Mapping the global condition,” in M. Featherstone (ed.), Global Culture: Nationalism, Globalization and Modernity. Sage: London  301.2 GLO

Robertson, R. 2003: The new global history: history in a global age’ in R. Robertson and K. White (eds) Globalization: Critical Concepts Vol VI. London: Routledge   327 GLO (short loan)

Scholte, J. A. 2005: Globalization: A Critical Introduction 2nd Edition . Houndmills: Palgrave (esp. Chapter 3)   330.9 SCH 

Holton, R. 2005: Making Globalization. Houndmills: Palgrave (esp. Chapter 2)  338.9 HOL

Held, D., McGrew, A., Goldblatt, D., and Perraton, J. 1999: Global Transformations: Politics, Economics and Culture. Cambridge: Polity  (esp. Chapter 1)  330.9 GLO

MacGillivray, A. 2006: A Brief History of Globalization. London: Robinson

 

 

Week 7           Theories of globalization III: global interconnectedness

Globalization is commonly associated with the rise of ‘network society’, a post-territorial polity founded upon mobilities, flows and increasing (technological) connectivity. Of all the theorists that have appropriated the metaphor of the network the most celebrated is undoubtedly Manuel Castells, whose three volume work The Information Age: Economy, Society and Culture has been one of the most influential works of social science (and globalization) in the past decade or so. In addition to Castells  we will also examine Appadurai’s influential work on flows and scapes, and Urry’s focus on mobilities.

 

Castells, M. 2000: The Rise of the Network Society. Blackwell: Oxford: Oxford University Press         301.243 CAS

Castells, M. 1998: End of Millennium Blackwell: Oxford: Oxford University Press 301.243 CAS

Castells, M. 2003: ‘Flows, networks, and identities: a critical theory of informational society’ in R. Robertson and K. White (eds) Globalization: Critical Concepts Vol VI. London: Routledge 327 GLO (short loan)

Appaduarai, A. 2004: “Disjuncture and difference in the global cultural economy” in Boli, J. and Lechner, F. 1999: The Globalization Reader (Second Edition) Oxford: Blackwell     330.9 GLO

Appadurai, A. 1996: Modernity at Large: Cultural Dimensions of Globalization. University of Minnesota Press: Minneapolis.  (esp Ch 2)  301.2 APP

Urry, J. 2000: Sociology Beyond Societies : Mobilities for the Next Century. London: Routledge. 301.001 URR

Urry, J. 2003: “Mobile Cultures”

http://www.comp.lancs.ac.uk/sociology/papers/urry-mobile-cultures.pdf

 

 

Week 8           Globalization and the nation-state

Is globalization a threat to the nation-state? Does globalization cause us to re-think some of the basic assumptions upon which international relations is founded? The nation-state has been placed at the centre of many debates on globalization, and the increasing interconnectedness of the world has led many commentators to conclude that sovereignty has been eroded and the role of the nation-state in world affairs undermined. We will examine these arguments, developing the idea that globalization has certainly transformed the role of the nation-state, and we will also consider the possibility that globalization may have in some ways strengthened the nation-state and helped to guarantee its survival in an uncertain world.

 

Holton, R. 1998: Globalization and the Nation-State. Houndmills: Palgrave 382.1 HOL

Axford, B. 1995: The Global System: Economics, Politics and Culture. (esp. Chapter  5) Cambridge: Polity   338.9 AXF

Lechner, F. and Boli (eds) 2004: The Globalization Reader (Second Edition) Oxford: Blackwell (esp. Part V)   330.9 GLO

Arnason, J. 1990: “Nationalism, globalization and modernity” in M. Featherstone  (ed.) Global Culture: Nationalism, Globalization and Modernity. London: Sage.  301.2 GLO

Youngs, G. 2003: “International relations as we enter the twenty-first century” in Kofman, E. and Youngs, G. (eds) Globalization: Theory and Practice. London: Continuum   320.01 GLO

Halliday, F. 2005: ‘Nationalism’ in J. Baylis and S. Smith (eds) The Globalization of World Politics. Oxford: Oxford University Press 327 GLO

Simai, M. 2003: ‘ The changing state system and the future of global governance’ in R. Robertson and K. White (eds) Globalization: Critical Concepts Vol II. London: Routledge 327 GLO (short loan)

 

 

Week 9           Globalization and democracy

Is globalization a threat to democracy? It is often assumed that it is as many commentators see the nation-state as the ‘natural’ setting for democracy. Nevertheless, it would be a mistake to see the nation-state as an autonomic ‘friend’ of democracy; the nation-state can also be authoritarian and repressive, particularly towards minorities. There is considerable support for the idea that globalization has been responsible for disseminating democratic values; indeed formal democracy is a norm in contemporary nation-states across the world. The role of human rights in this context is significant; are human rights more universal than democratic values? And what is the future for democracy in a ‘post-political’ world?

 

Scholte, J. A. 2000: Globalization: A Critical Introduction (esp. Ch 11, ‘Globalization and (un)democracy’) Houndmills: Palgrave 327 SCH

Hirst, P.2001: ‘Between the local and the global: democracy in the C21st’ in R. Axtmann (ed) Balancing Democracy London: Continuum

Barber, B. 2001: ‘Challenges to democracy in an age of globalization’ in R. Axtmann (ed) Balancing Democracy London: Continuum

Dahl, R. 1999: ‘Can international organizations be democratic? A skeptic’s view’ in I. Shapiro and C. Hacker-Cordon (eds) Democracy’s Edges. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 321.8 DEM

Held, D. 1999: “The transformation of political community: rethinking democracy in the context of globalization” in I. Shapiro and C. Hacker-Cordon (eds) Democracy’s Edges. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 321.8 DEM

Lechner, F. and Boli (eds) 2004: The Globalization Reader (Second Edition) Oxford: Blackwell (esp. Parts V and VI)   330.9 GLO

Archibugi, D., Held, D. and Kohler, M. 1998: Reimagining Political Community Cambridge: Polity Press   327 REI

Beetham, D. 1999: Democracy and Human Rights Cambridge: Polity Press   321.8 BEE

 

 

Week 10         Global civil society

Is it meaningful to talk of global civil society? Like democracy, civil society is often seen to belong within a national setting, but at the same time, there has been much interest in recent times in the potential of global civil society to act as a counterbalance to US domination in international affairs and/or to offset the power of global capital. We will examine the arguments for and against the emergence of global civil society and look at its potential in a world beyond (but not without) nation-states.

 

Kaldor, M: 2003: ‘Global civil society’ in D. Held and A. McGrew (eds) The Global Transformations Reader: an Introduction to the Globalization Debate Cambridge: Polity Press 327 GLO

Scholte, J.A. 2003: ‘Global civil society’ in R. Robertson and K. White (eds) Globalization: Critical Concepts Vol III. London: Routledge 327 GLO (short loan)

Baker, G. and Chandler, D. (eds) 2005: Global Civil Society: Contested Futures  London: Routledge 327 GLO

Holton, R. 2005: Making Globalization. Houndmills: Palgrave (esp. Chapter 6) 338.9 HOL

Keane, J. 2003: Global Civil Society? Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

321.8 KEA

Laxer, G. and Halperin, S. (eds) 2003: Global Civil Society and its Limits. Houndmills: Palgrave

Della Porta, D., Rucht, D., and Kriesi, H. 1999: Social Movements in a Globalizing World  New York: St Martins Press  301.242 SOC

Williams, M. (2003) “Social movements and global politics” in E. Kofman and G. Youngs (eds) Globalization: Theory and Practice (2nd Edition) London: Continuum. 320.01 GLO

Boli, J. and Thomas, G. 2004: ‘World culture in the world polity: a century of internal NGOs’ in F. Lechner and J. Boli (eds) The Globalization Reader (Second Edition) 330.9 GLO

Keck, M. and Sikkink, K. 1998: Activists Beyond Borders: Advocacy Networks in International Politics  (Cornell University Press)  322.43 KEC

  

 

Week 11  Globalization and sport    

 

Sport, and in particular world cups and world championships, provides a good example of the ways in which culture can both unite the world and provide evidence of a global consciousness (after all the whole point of a world cup is to be the best in the world, and to recognised as such by the rest of the world). It would appear that truly global sports such as football, tennis and golf provide a means through which the world can be united as a single place (if only for the duration of a competition). Sport has an important relation to globalization and, it can be argued, acts as a motor of transnational cultural exchange.

 

Andrews, D. and Grainger, A. 2007: ‘Sport and globalization’ in G. Ritzer (ed) The Blackwell Companion to Globalization. Oxford: Blackwell

Rumford, C. 2007: ‘More than a game: globalization and the postwesternization of world cricket’ in R. Giulianotti and R. Robertson (ed)  Globalization and Sport. Oxford: Blackwell.

Smart, B. 2007: ‘Not playing around: global capitalism, modern sport and consumer culture’ in R. Giulianotti and R. Robertson (ed)  Globalization and Sport. Oxford: Blackwell.

Andrews, D. and Ritzer, G. 2007: ‘The grobal in the sporting global’ in R. Giulianotti and R. Robertson (ed)  Globalization and Sport. Oxford: Blackwell.

Guiullianotti, R. and Robertson, R. 2007: ‘Recovering the social: globalization, football and transnationalism’ in R. Giulianotti and R. Robertson (ed)  Globalization and Sport. Oxford: Blackwell.

 

 

Week 12  Environment and ‘world risk society’

It has been argued that we now live in a world risk society. From bird flu to global warming the risks inherent in everyday choices (lifestyle, consumption) we seem to be bombarded with information about risk. Contemporary society seems to be characterised by risk and how it should be managed at both the institutional and personal levels. Importantly, many risks (depletion of the ozone layer, nuclear disasters) are such that they cannot be contained and managed by agencies of one or more nation-states. Thus, the very nature of risk forces us to both recognise the globality of risk society and the need for transnational forms of cooperation in order to reach possible solutions.

 

Beck, U. 1999: World risk society. Cambridge: Polity

Beck, U. (undated) ‘From Industrial Society to Risk Society: Survival, Social Structure and Ecological Enlightenment’          www.emayzine.com/infoage/lectures/risk.htm

Beck, U. 1992: Risk society: towards a new modernity. Cambridge: Polity 301.2 BEC

Beck, U. (undated) ‘Politics of risk society’ www.envsci.nau.edu/sisk/courses/env555/Readings/Beck.PDF

Lupton, D. 1999: Risk London: Routledge   301.1 LUP

Giddens, A. 1991: Modernity and Self Identity: Self and Society in the Late Modern Age  (esp. Chapter 4) Cambridge, Polity Press      301.001GID

Denney, D. 2005: Risk and Society. London: Sage   301.1 DEN

Mythen, G. 2004: Ulrich Beck: A Critical Introduction to Risk Society. London: Pluto Press         301.2 BEC/M

Marshall, B. 2003: ‘Globalization, environmental degradation and Ulrich Beck’s risk society’ in R. Robertson and K. White (eds) Globalization: Critical Concepts Vol V. London: Routledge 327 GLO (short loan)

 

  

Week 13         Global terrorism

The events of 9/11 made it very clear that terrorism is a global threat, a fact which subsequent terrorist attacks in Madrid, London, Istanbul and elsewhere have reinforced. Organized crime, traffickers in drugs, arms and persons, and terrorist networks seem to move across national borders with great ease; the same borders that are increasingly subject to surveillance and are reinforced by state-of-the-art ‘smart’ technology. A focus on terrorism reveals further dimensions to globalization, and the interrelatedness of its economic, political, and cultural dimensions.

 

Martin, G. 2007: ‘Globalization  and international terrorism’ in in G. Ritzer (ed) The Blackwell Companion to Globalization. Oxford: Blackwell

Devji, F. 2006: ‘Al-Qaeda, spectre of globalisation’ Soundings 32

http://www.lwbooks.co.uk/journals/articles/devji06.html

Scholte, J. A. 2005: Globalization: A Critical Introduction 2nd Edition . Houndmills: Palgrave 330.9 SCH  (esp. ‘Chapter 9)

Devji, F. 2005: Landscapes of the Jihad. London: Hurst          297.72 DEV

Kiras, J. 2005: ‘Terrorism and globalization’ in J. Baylis and S. Smith (eds) The Globalization of World Politics. Oxford: Oxford University Press 327 GLO

Naim, M. 2006: Illicit: How Smugglers, Traffickers and Copycats are Hijacking the Global Economy. London: Heinemann.

Della Porta, D. 2001: ‘Terror against the state’ in K. Nash and A. Scott (eds) The Blackwell Comparison to Political Sociology. Oxford: Blackwell 320.01 BLA

Rumford, C. 2002: ‘Confronting “Uncivil Society” and the “Dark Side of Globalization”’ www.socresonline.org.uk/6/3/rumford.html

Ritzer, G. 2003: ‘September 11, 2001: mass murder and its roots in the symbolism of American consumer culture’ in R. Robertson and K. White (eds) Globalization: Critical Concepts Vol VI. London: Routledge 327 GLO (short loan)

Appaduarai, A. 2006: Fear of Small Numbers. Durham: Duke University Press.

 

 

Week  14        Global governance

Do institutions of global governance exist? Is it possible to govern globalization? While the answer the first question is most certainly ‘yes’ (there exist many institutions governing all manner of global economic regimes, regulating communications and technological development, and managing cultural projects), most commentators would be reluctant to endorse the idea that globalization is governable. We will examine the meaning of global governance, its current scope, and the roles played by international institutions, nation-states, NGOs etc. We will also look at the prospects for regimes of global governance and examine whether the governance of globalization is always a good thing.

 

Scholte, J. A. 2000: Globalization: a Critical Introduction (esp. Chapter 5) Houndmills: Palgrave   327 SCH

Woods, N. 2002: ‘Global governance and the role of institutions’ in D. Held and A. McGrew Governing Globalization: Power, Authority and Global Governance Cambridge: Polity Press      327.1 GOV

Koenig-Archibugi, M. 2002: ‘Mapping global governance’ in D. Held and A. McGrew Governing Globalization: Power, Authority and Global Governance Cambridge: Polity Press 327.1 GOV

Held, D. and McGrew, A. 2003: The global transformations reader: an introduction to the globalization debate (esp. Part IV) Cambridge: Polity Press 327 GLO

Held, D. and McGrew, A. 2002: ‘Introduction’ in D. Held and A. McGrew Governing Globalization: Power, Authority and Global Governance Cambridge: Polity Press 327.1 GOV

Scholte, J.A. (ed) 2002: Civil Society and Global Finance London: Routledge 332.15 CIV

Lechner, F. and Boli, J. (eds) 2004: The Globalization Reader (Second Edition) Oxford: Blackwell (esp. Part IV) 330.9 GLO

Wilkinson, R. (ed) 2005: The Global Governance Reader. London: Routledge 327.17 GLO

Stiglitz, J. 2004:  Globalization and Its Discontents. Penguin 338.9 STI

Bhagwati, J. 2004: In Defence of Globalization. Oxford: Oxford University Press  338.9 BHA

 

 

Week 15         Americanization

In some versions of globalization theory globalization is synonymous with Americanization and cultural imperialism. For other commentators the relationship of America to globalization is much more complex, and one which deserves detailed investigation. We will examine a range of approaches to the question of the extent to which globalization leads to new forms of cultural hegemony and global domination. George Ritzer’s ‘McDonaldization thesis’ is one such approach.

 

Pieterse, J.N 2003: “Hyperpower exceptionalism: globalization the American way” in Beck, U., Sznaider, N., and Winter, R. (eds) 2003: Global America? The Cultural Consequences of Globalization Liverpool: Liverpool University Press  327.73 GLO

Ritzer, G. 2003:  “Assessing McDonaldization, Americanization and globalization” in Beck, U., Sznaider, N., and Winter, R. (eds) 2003: Global America? The Cultural Consequences of Globalization Liverpool: Liverpool University Press 327.73 GLO

Ritzer, G. 1998: The McDonaldization Thesis. London: Sage 301.240973 RIT

Ritzer, G. 2004: The Globalization of Nothing Thousand Oaks: Pine Forge Press 301.24 RIT

Beck, U., Sznaider, N., and Winter, R. (eds) 2003: Global America? The Cultural Consequences of Globalization Liverpool: Liverpool University Press (esp. Part 3)  327.73 GLO

Falk, R. 2004:  The Declining World Order: America’s Imperial Geopolitics London: Routledge   327.73 FAL

 

 

Week 16         Identity and belonging

For most of the Twentieth Century social and political identities were defined primarily by class and/or national belonging, and more recently by gender and ethnicity. The last couple of decades have seen a proliferation identities and the rise of ‘identity politics’. Rather than being situated by an ‘objective’ class position, identities are now subjective, multiple, and often the result of lifestyle choices. We will look at the importance of identity politics, multiple forms of belonging in the contemporary world, and the impact of globalization on the politics of identity.

 

Croucher, S.2004. Globalization and Belonging: the Politics of Identity in a Changing World. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield          301.18 CRO

Castells, M. 1997: The Power of Identity Oxford: Blackwell               301.243 CAS

Peterson, V. 2003: ‘The politics of identification in the context of globalization’ in R. Robertson and K. White (eds) Globalization: Critical Concepts Vol II. London: Routledge 327 GLO (short loan)

Tomlinson, J. 2003: ‘Globalization and cultural identity’ in D. Held and A. McGrew (eds) The Global Transformations Reader (Second edition) Cambridge: Polity Press  327 GLO

Lechner, F. and Boli, J. World Culture: Origins and Consequences (esp. Chapter 9) Oxford: Blackwell  301.2 LEC

Beck, U. 2003: ‘Living your own life in a runaway world: individualization, globalization and politics’ in R. Robertson and K. White (eds) Globalization: Critical Concepts Vol IV. London: Routledge  327 GLO (short loan)

Simson, J. 2003: ‘The “great reversal”: selves, communities and the global system’ in R. Robertson and K. White (eds) Globalization: Critical Concepts Vol IV. London: Routledge 327 GLO (short loan)

 

Week 17         Globalization and borders

Some commentators have believed that globalization would lead to a ‘borderless world’ in which national borders become redundant. More realistically, it appears that globalization has in fact led to a world of proliferating borders, particularly in response to the need to counter terrorism and the perceived threat arising from the mobility of immigrants and refuges. It would appear that the needs of economic globalization (open borders, increased mobility) are at odds with the need to increase security. In addition, it is clear that the nature of borders is changing. Borders are increasing diffused through society (found at airports, railway station and along motorways, rather than being at the periphery of the nation-state), and differentiated (what appears as a border to some represents a gateway to others).

 

Jacobson, D. 2006: ‘Borders’ in Robertson, R. and Scholte, J. (eds) 2007: Encyclopedia of Globalization (Volume 1) (Routledge)  330.903 (oversize)

Balibar, E. 1998: ‘The borders of Europe’ in Cheah, P. and Robbins, B. (eds) Cosmopolitics: Thinking and Feeling Beyond the Nation. Minneapolis: Minnesota University Press 327.17 COS

Rumford, C. 2006: ‘Borders and bordering’ in G. Delanty (ed) Europe and Asia: Towards a New Cosmopolitanism London: Routledge

McNeill, D. 2004 New Europe: Imagined Spaces (esp. Chapter 6) London: Arnold 914.03 MAC

Andreas, P. 2000: Border games: policing the U.S.-Mexico divide Cornell University Press 364.157 AND

Delanty, G. and Rumford, C. 2005: Rethinking Europe: Social Theory and the Implications of Europeanization (esp. Chapter 7) London: Routledge 301.0094 DEL

 

                                                                                      

Week 18         Cosmopolitanism

Cosmopolitanism, an important strand of Enlightenment thinking, has re-emerged in recent years after being eclipsed for more than a century by nationalist thought. Whereas previously cosmopolitanism was associated with (abstract) ideas of world citizenship and universal brotherhood, more recent constructions emphasize the location of the individual within a multiplicity of identities and belongings and membership in a plurality of communities. Thus, in addition to rejection of a narrow nationalistic outlook cosmopolitanism can claim a new political content: the an idea of world citizenship has been given substance through notions of environmental responsibility, the universality of human and personhood rights, and the need for worldwide human development. Thus constituted, cosmopolitanism provides an important perspective on processes of globalization and the interconnectedness of the world.

 

Rumford, C. (ed) 2007: Cosmopolitanism and Europe. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press 301.0094 COS (esp. chapters 1 and 2).

Vertovec, S. and Cohen, R. (eds) 2002: Conceiving Cosmopolitanism. Oxford: Oxford University Press   301.2 CON

Beck, U, 2007: ‘Cosmopolitanism: a critical theory for the C21st’ in G. Ritzer (ed) The Blackwell Companion to Globalization. Oxford: Blackwell.

Beck, U. 2002: “Cosmopolitan society and its enemies” Theory Culture and Society 19(1-2)

http://www.sunysb.edu/sociology/faculty/Levy/Beck%20Cosmopolitan%20Society%20and%20its%20Enemies%20(TCS).pdf

Beck, U. 2006: Cosmopolitan Vision Cambridge: Polity Press  

Archibugi, D. 2003: Debating Cosmopolitics London: Verso    327 DEB

Cheah, P. and Robbins, B. 1998: Cosmopolitics: Thinking and Feeling Beyond the Nation University of Minnesota Press    327.17 COS

Archibugi, D., Held, D., and Kohler, M. 1998: Re-imagining political community :studies in cosmopolitan democracy. Cambridge: Polity Press  327 REI

Stevenson, N. 2003: Cultural citizenship: cosmopolitan questions. Buckingham: Open University Press 323.6 STE

Axford, B. and Huggins, R. 2001: "Globalization and the prospects for cosmopolitan world society" http://www.valt.helsinki.fi/vol/cosmopolis/papers/axford.html

Pogge, T. 2002: World Poverty and Human Rights: Cosmopolitan Responsibilities and Reforms   Cambridge: Polity Press   323.4 POG

 

 

Week 19         Course review

 

Week 20         Course review

           

Essay questions

 

  1. In what ways does the study of globalization pose a challenge to political science and/or IR?

 

  1. “You can’t have political globalization without global political issues”. Discuss.

 

  1. What are the strengths and weaknesses of economic interpretations of globalization?

 

  1. “It is culture rather than the economy that drives globalization”. Discuss.

 

  1. Can World Systems Theory still make a major contribution to debates on globalization?

 

  1. When did globalization begin?

 

  1. Has globalization led to ‘network society’?

 

  1. Is globalization a threat to the nation-state?

 

  1. Has globalization spread democracy around the world?

 

  1. What evidence is there for the existence of global civil society?

 

  1. ‘Sport is a key element of cultural globalization’. Discuss.

 

  1. What are the strengths and weaknesses of Beck’s ‘risk society’ thesis?

 

  1. “Global terrorism is the ‘dark side’ of globalization”. Discuss.

 

  1. Is it meaningful to talk of global governance?

 

  1. “Globalization is another name for Americanization”. Discuss.

 

  1. What has been the impact of globalization on identity politics?

 

  1. ‘Globalization has led not to a “borderless world” but to a proliferation of borders’. Discuss.

 

  1. What is the relationship between globalization and cosmopolitanism?

DEPARTMENT OF POLITICS AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

Course Specification 2007/8