Readings in Globalization

Key Concepts and Major Debates

Ritzer, George / Atalay, Zeynep (Editor)

1. Edition April 2010
488 Pages, Softcover
Textbook

ISBN: 978-1-4051-3273-2

John Wiley & Sons

Short Description

This unique and engaging anthology introduces students to the major concepts of globalization within the context of the key debates and disputes. Readings in Globalization illustrates that major debates in the field are not only useful to examine for their own merit but can extend our knowledge of globalization. The volume explores both the political economy of globalization and the relationship of culture to globalization. The wide range of concepts covered includes Civilizations, Colonialism, Nation-State, Transnationalism, World-Systems, Empire, Glocalization, McDonaldization, and World Culture.

This unique and engaging anthology introduces students to the major concepts of globalization within the context of the key debates and disputes.
* Introduces globalization through its basic concepts, rather than thematically; a distinctive approach that provides students with a better grasp of what social science has to offer on the topic
* Utilizes concepts from interdisciplinary sources, bringing together work from key figures across a number of fields - from Weber and Marx, to contemporary figures in the field, including Beck, Bauman, Castells, and Homi Bhabha
* Includes excerpts to illustrate ideas, all at an appropriate level of difficulty for an undergraduate audience
* Offers all of this in the dynamic context of major debates surrounding the basic concepts and the fundamental realities of globalization
* Designed so it can be used independently, or alongside Ritzer's Globalization: A Basic Text for a complete student resource

Introduction to the Book.

1. Introduction to Globalization Debates.

Part I: Political Economy.

2. Civilizations.

3. Orientalism, Colonialism, and Postcolonialism.

4. Neoliberalism.

5. Structural Adjustment.

6. Nation-State.

7. Transnationalism.

8. World Systems.

9. Empire.

10. Network Society and Informationalism.

11. World Risk Society and Cosmopolitanism.

12. McWorld and Jihad.

Part II: Culture.

13. Creolization, Hybridity, and Glocalization.

14. Critiquing Creolization, Hybridity, and Glocalization.

15. McDonaldization.

16. World Culture.

Sources and Credits.

Index.

George Ritzer is Distinguished University Professor at the University of Maryland, with awards that include the American Sociological Association's Distinguished Contribution to Teaching Award. He is the author of numerous books including Globalization: A Basic Text (2009), The McDonaldization of Society (1993; 2008), and The Globalization of Nothing (2003; 2007). He is also editor of The Encyclopedia of Social Theory (2005), The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology (2007), The Blackwell Companion to Globalization (2007), and the forthcoming The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Globalization. His work has been translated into more than 20 languages.

Zeynep Atalay is a PhD Candidate in Sociology at the University of Maryland. Her research interests lie in globalization, civil society, social movements, and NGO networks. Her current research explores the ways in which Muslim NGOs mobilize global networks through civil society.

G. Ritzer, University of Maryland, USA; Z. Atalay, University of Maryland, USA