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http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/stories/20110617281207400.htm
Points to ponder
C.T. KURIEN
A critical discourse on the interconnectedness of capitalism,
colonialism and globalisation with a well-defined focus.
WHEN ‘globalisation' became a talking point a few decades ago,
there was a lot of discussion and debate as to what it was. The
difference of opinion was mainly between those who maintained that
it was primarily a technological phenomenon and those who held
that it was essentially caused by economic factors. By and large
the latter position is now widely accepted. Most people have also
come to accept that it is the latest manifestation of capitalism
reflecting its innate propensity to go beyond national boundaries.
Even for those who are fairly familiar with colonialism, though,
the link between it and capitalism, on the one hand, and between
it and globalisation, on the other, appears to be rather vague. A
popular point of view is that colonialism is an old and
globalisation the latest version of capitalism. Those who do not
see this connection frequently maintain that the colonial era is
over and that the present is the age of globalisation. Yet another
position is that colonialism was a crude version of capitalism
associated with political domination, but globalisation is quite
refined and totally devoid of any colonial element.
What the volume under review attempts is to make a critical
evaluation of the interconnectedness of capitalism, colonialism
and globalisation. It is a discourse among academics, the papers
brought together having been originally presented at a panel on
economic change organised by the Aligarh Historian Society in
Delhi in May 2010. The papers in this volume are essentially
exploratory in nature with a well-defined focus.
The lead essay is by Irfan Habib on “Capitalism in History” and is
a contribution towards the old and ongoing discussion (perhaps
debate) on how capitalism emerged and what contributed to its
early growth. A widely held view is that capitalism emerged
because of the innate evolutionary proclivity of social systems.
Those who hold this position may find Habib's categorical
statement that “[t]he arrival of capitalism was not a natural,
internal process. Subjugation of other economies was crucial to
the formation of industrial capital within it” rather difficult to
accept. But Habib is not making a glib statement; he has long
historical research to support his position. He goes on to
indicate that if the development of capitalism in a country
depends on the flow of resources from other countries in its early
stages, imperialism was and is a necessary element of capitalism
after it has developed. That is how capitalism, colonialism and
globalisation are interlinked, according to him.
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