Globalization, the Highest Stage of Imperialism

Abstract

Capitalism, imperialism, and globalization have historically developed in parallel. Globalization is ultimately driven by the expansionary dynamic of monopolistic “finance capitalism” together with a “hegemonic state”—first the United Kingdom, now the United States—that, when its productive advantages decline, resorts to the export of finance capital (Arrighi and Silver 2001). A focus on overt manifestations of current globalization such as the increased density of transnational communications, trade, and investment obscures the unequal power relations by which these forces are manipulated to serve some and disadvantage others (Cox et al. 2002); indeed, the literature on globalization is often marked by a silence on imperialism. It also ignores the extent to which current globalization is but the latest stage in an ongoing power struggle over global dominance. In this story, which closely relates to the “fractured world society” perspectives outlined by Stephan Stetter in the introductory chapters of this volume, the Middle East has played a pivotal role (Dodge and Higgott 2002).