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Political Theory
Globalization is one of the most pervasive terms in political language; it is employed to explain just about any phenomenon imaginable. This has some positive aspects: for too long political theorists and scientists examined the state in isolation from its international environment. But the sheer promiscuity of the term has led also (and often) to vagueness and conceptual confusion. Although residues of this problem linger in The Globalization of Liberalism, the editors have done an excellent job in producing a coherent and interesting collection.
The book is focused on a relatively neglected area, namely the ideology shaping globalization. The book is split into three parts. Part I consists of three essays which grapple with the meaning of liberalism in globalization theory and practice. In particular there is an interesting exchange between David Long and Robert Keohane, over the value of employing social scientific ‘neo-liberal’ IR theory or a more normatively rich political theoretic form. Part II offers five essays – by Richard Falk, J. G. Ruggie, Stephen Gill, Mervyn Frost, and Tom Young – on various aspects of global liberalism; again, no clear understanding of the nature of ‘liberalism’ emerges, but all of the essays are of high quality. Part III, ‘International Relations beyond Europe,’ consists of three essays, on China, Egypt and Tunisia, and India. Although stimulating, the section fits uneasily with the rest of the book, which by definition was ‘beyond Europe’ in the first place; nevertheless, the case studies are rewarding. Overall, the book is a useful addition to the literature on both liberalism (which all too often retreats into sterile ideal theorizing) and globalization (which is all too often devoid of serious ideological analysis).
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