Political economy and the rural‐urban divide, 1767–1981

Abstract

Recent theories of urban and rural bias in Third World development are premised upon the notion of a relatively clear rural‐urban divide in terms of ecology, occupation and social and political organisation. As is the case with development economics generally, these theorists have drawn upon the societal assumptions and methodological postulates of classical political economy and of its Marxian offshoot. The concept of a clear rural‐urban divide is deeply embedded in classical political economy, in Marxian political economy, and in sociological theory. The relevance of this concept to the contemporary Third World is implicitly questioned.