2 3 C H A P T E R THE WORLD SYSTEM AND COLONIALISM 23-2

THE WORLD SYSTEM AND COLONIALISM Industrialization Socioeconomic Effects of Industrialization Colonialism Development The Second World The World System Today 3

THE WORLD SYSTEM AND COLONIALISM When and why did the world system develop, and what is it like today? When and how did European colonialism develop, and how is its legacy expressed in postcolonial studies? How do colonialism, communism, neoliberalism, development, and industrialization exemplify intervention philosophies?

THE WORLD SYSTEM The world system and relations among countries within it have been shaped by capitalist world economy Capitalist world economy: world system committed to production for sale or exchange with the object of maximizing profits Capital: wealth invested with the intent of producing profit

THE WORLD SYSTEM World system theory: discernible social system, based on wealth and power differentials, that extends beyond countries

THE WORLD SYSTEM Wallerstein: countries within modern world system occupy three positions: Core: dominant position; nations with an advanced system of production Semiperiphery: industrialized nations that fill an intermediate position between core and periphery Periphery: the world’s least privileged and powerful nations

THE EMERGENCE OF THE WORLD SYSTEM By the 15th century, Europeans profited from transoceanic trade-oriented economy People worldwide had entered Europe’s sphere of influence Europeans extracted silver and gold, conquered natives, and colonized their lands Previously, rural people produced mainly for their own needs

INDUSTRIALIZATION Industrial Revolution: historic transformation (in Europe, after 1750) of traditional into modern societies through industrialization of their economies European industrialization developed from a domestic system of manufacture

CAUSES OF THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION Began with cotton products, iron, and pottery Widely used goods whose manufacture could be broken down into simple routines Began in England, not France France did not have to transform its manufacturing system to increase production, because it had a larger labor force

CAUSES OF THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION Britain’s population began to increase dramatically with industrialization Demographic explosion fueled consumption and fostered innovation Drew on advantages in natural resources Nation’s cultural values and religion contributed to its industrialization

SOCIOECONOMIC EFFECTS OF INDUSTRIALIZATION Initially, industrialization in England raised overall standard of living Factory owners soon began to recruit cheap labor from among poorest populations Social ills worsened with growth of factory towns and industrial cities

INDUSTRIAL STRATIFICATION Marx and Weber focused on stratification systems associated with industrialization Marx saw socioeconomic stratification as a sharp division between two opposed classes Bourgeoisie: owned the means of production Working class (proletariat): people who had to sell their labor to survive Proletarianization: the separation of workers from the means of production

INDUSTRIAL STRATIFICATION Marx Class consciousness: recognition of collective interests and a personal identification with one’s economic group Viewed classes as powerful collective forces that could mobilize human energies to influence history

Figure 23.1: Location of England (United Kingdom) and France

MODERN STRATIFICATION SYSTEMS Lenski: argued that social equality tends to increase in advanced industrial societies Proliferation of middle-class occupations creates opportunities for social mobility Differences in income and wealth that set off richest from poorest Americans is widening Great Recession of December 2007—June 2009 increased inequality

MODERN STRATIFICATION SYSTEMS Weber: faulted Karl Marx for an overly simple and exclusively economic view Wealth, power, and prestige are separate components of social ranking and tend to be correlated Social identities based on ethnicity, religion, race, nationality, and other attributes can take priority over class

STRATIFICATION Wealth that flows from periphery and semiperiphery to core helped core capitalists maintain their profits while satisfying demands of core workers Current world stratification system features substantial contrast between capitalists and workers in core nations and workers on the periphery

Figure 23.2: The Ratio of the Wealthiest 1% to Median Wealth in the United States

COLONIALISM Imperialism: policy of extending rule of one nation or empire over others Colonialism: political, social, economic, and cultural domination of a territory and its people by a foreign power for an extended period of time

COLONIALISM European colonialism had two phases: The Age of Discovery, 1492–1850 1850 to just after the end of World War II Dominated by Britain and France

BRITISH COLONIALISM The British empire covered one-fifth of the world’s land surface and ruled one-fourth of its population First phase concentrated in the New World, western Africa, and India Closed with American Revolution

BRITISH COLONIALISM During the second period of colonialism, Britain eventually controlled most of India, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and large portions of eastern and southern Africa The British justified colonial efforts by what Kipling called the “white man’s burden” The empire began to fall apart after World War II

Figure 23.3: Map of the British Empire in 1765 and 1914

FRENCH COLONIALISM French colonialism driven by state, church, and armed forces rather than by business interests First phase (early 1600s) focused on Canada, the Louisiana Territory, the Caribbean, and parts of India The second phase (1870–World War II) included most of North Africa and Indochina

FRENCH COLONIALISM Ideological legitimization for French colonialism was mission civilisatrice Spread French culture, language, and religion throughout colonies Two forms of colonial rule: Indirect rule: practice of governing through native political structures and leaders Direct rule: practice of imposing new governments upon native populations

Figure 23.4: Map of the French Empire at Its Height Around 1914

COLONIALISM AND IDENTITY Whole countries, along with social groups and divisions within them, were colonial inventions Hundreds of ethnic groups and “tribes” in Africa are colonial constructions

POSTCOLONIAL STUDIES Postcolonial studies: study of interactions between European nations and colonized societies Former colonies can be divided into: Settler countries: large numbers of colonists and sparser native populations Nonsettler postcolonies: large native populations and a small number of Europeans Mixed postcolonies: sizable native and European populations

Figure 23.5: Small West African Nations Created by Colonialism

DEVELOPMENT Intervention philosophy: ideological justification for outsiders to guide local peoples in specific directions Economic development plans also have intervention philosophies Intervention philosophy may pit assumed wisdom of First World planners against purported conservatism, ignorance, or “obsolescence” of “inferior” local people

NEOLIBERALISM Neoliberalism: governments should not regulate private enterprise; free market forces should rule Smith: free trade is best way for a nation’s economy to develop No restrictions should be placed on manufacturing, no barriers to commerce, and no tariffs

NEOLIBERALISM Prevailed in the United States until President Roosevelt’s 1930s’ New Deal Fall of Communism (1989–1991) saw a revival of economic liberalism In exchange for loans, postsocialist and developing governments must accept neoliberal premise that deregulation leads to economic growth

THE SECOND WORLD “Second World” refers to former Warsaw Pact nations Includes former Soviet Union nations and the socialist, and once-socialist, countries of Eastern Europe and Asia

COMMUNISM Two meanings of communism: communism (small c): social system in which property is owned by community and in which people work for the common good Communism (large C): political movement and doctrine seeking to overthrow capitalism and establish form of communism such as that which prevailed in the Soviet Union, 1917–1991

COMMUNISM Today only five Communist states are left, compared with 23 in 1985: China Cuba Laos North Korea Vietnam

COMMUNISM Many Communist states were totalitarian and demanded total submission of the individual to the state Communist party monopolized power Relations with party were highly centralized and strictly disciplined State owned the means of production Cultivated a sense of belonging to an international movement

COMMUNISM States that once had “planned economies” were now following a neoliberal agenda Democratization Marketization

POSTSOCIALIST TRADITIONS Neoliberal economists assumed that dismantling Soviet Union’s planned economy would raise its GDP and living standards Gains in productivity did not materialize Corruption ensued World Bank’s approach to corruption assumes a clear and sharp distinction between state and private spheres

THE WORLD SYSTEM TODAY Spread of industrialization continues Nations shifted positions within world system 20th century industrialization added hundreds of new industries and millions of new jobs Mass production gave rise to a culture of consumption Industrialization entailed a shift from renewable resources to the use of fossil fuels

RECAP 23.1: Ascent and Decline of Nations Within the World System

Figure 23.6: The World System in 2000

INDUSTRIAL DEGRADATION Industrialization, factory labor now characteristic Destruction of indigenous economies, ecologies, and populations Indigenous peoples: original inhabitants of particular areas

Table 23.1: Energy Consumption in Various Contexts

Table 23.2: Energy Consumption in Selected Countries, 2004