STUDY UNIT 10: Imperialism, colonialism and globalisation

Question 1

what is meant by colonialism

Answer 1

“colonialism” signifies the
settlement of foreign territories; however, it was not an identical process in the
places where it occurred. Sometimes there were no inhabitants of the territory
before the arrival of the settlers. Sometimes there was no conflict between
the settlers and the previous inhabitants. Sometimes it entailed conquest anddomination over previous inhabitants and the reshaping of their economic
practices, belief systems, cultures, authority systems and social relations.
Instances of colonialism on all continents precede the Christian Era (BC) by
several centuries and for centuries thereafter too (AD), all in a non-capitalist
context.

Question 2

comment on imperialism

Answer 2

referred
to coming under the authority of an emperor or royal house. However, by the
early 20th century, Marxist-inspired analysts of the phenomenon were using
it to signify a particular stage of capitalism as a global system, or, the highest
stage of the development of capitalism was “imperialism”. Imperialism was
also understood to not necessarily require direct colonial settlement and rule.
Imperialism is primarily an economic system entailing the penetration and
control of markets and it does not necessarily require political authority over
territories. Summing up the distinction, Loomba (2005:12) says: “Imperialism
can function without formal colonies (as in United States imperialism today)
but colonialism cannot

Question 3

explain dependancy amongst trading components

Answer 3

The periphery regions have poor infrastructural development, provide raw materials to the core, serve as markets for the
surplus output of the core and semi-periphery and are dependent on both for
the supply of capital goods

Semi-periphery regions
share aspects of both core and periphery regions: they have well-developed
infrastructure, trade with both core and periphery regions but are dominated
by core regions, yet they have a significant level of industrial development and
are able to dominate and exploit periphery regions. The workforce in semiperiphery
regions is stratified among well-paid and poorly-paid workers. The
external regions are not yet part of the capitalist world economy, but, given its
expansionist logic, they will be incorporated into the capitalist world economy
and exploited by the other regions

Question 4

discuss globalisation

Answer 4

globalisation signifies social change, it describes the present era in which
humankind lives, and, “we are all affected by it”. So, there is an assertion
that your personal circumstances intersect with larger social processes, not
just within the confines of your society and its immediate national territorial
boundaries, but at a global level

“the intensification of world-wide social relations which link distant localities in
such a way that local happenings are shaped by events occurring many miles
away” (see Holborn 2015:265). The idea of “intensification” in the definition
means increasingly greater concentration. So, the social relations we have
in our immediate territorial environment with people and events in distant
territorial environments are becoming ever more substantial. And, note too
that the definition states that people and events in our immediate territorial
environment are also increasingly impacting the lives of people and events
in distant territories.

Question 5

what does globalisation theories deal with

Answer 5

Globalisation theories deal with trade policies, political
ideologies and policies, unemployment trends, technological advantages,
telecommunication connections, international corporations, cultural forces,
social identities, amongst several other areas of focus

Question 6

what are the 3 schools of thought regarding globalisation

Answer 6

These schools are called
“hyperglobalisers”,
they
emphasise economic factors as driving the phenomenon and that the
sovereign powers of states have become diminished in the face of the power
of transnational corporations (see Mansbach 2013:4–5). These transnational
corporations have activities and subsidiaries spread across the globe as well
as extensive economic relations with each other contend that the end of the Cold War rivalry between
the capitalist West and communistic Soviet bloc, as well as the collapse of
the Soviet bloc, have produced a global capitalist economic system

“sceptics”
In the sceptics’ theorisation about globalisation considerable attention
is given to analysis of economic interdependence of the different parts of the
globe to make sense of how pervasive this social force is in people’s lives. What
this means is that factors such as economic choices, production practices,
trade policies or monetary policies adopted by another country have an impact
on the immediate circumstances of people in other societies. In other words,
people’s personal circumstances or biographies in one particular country
– their employment opportunities, their ability to buy goods from another
country, amongst others – are impacted by their societies’ economic links or
interdependency with another.

“transformationalists

The foregoing perspectives emphasise issues related to
contemporary economic interconnectedness, but the transformationalists focus
on a broader array of issues connected to social life such as politics, economics,technological forces, cultural connections, security, migration, human rights
and environmental aspects of the contemporary era For the transformationalists it makes little sense to distinguish between “foreign”
and “domestic” because the movement of communication media, ideas, people,
entrepreneurial activity and commodities across borders is almost unhindered.
Our understanding of society and societal relations cannot confine it to a
single territory. Globalisation is inherently linked to the notion of modernity and
the technological advances making it possible, whether it is through global
computer communications, cellphone connections, satellite communication
or travel by jet plane, amongst others.