Globalization: Against Reductionism and Linearity

This paper challenges two popular notions that (1) globalization refers only to the economic unification of the globe integrating all the countries of the world under a single grid of market; and (2) globalization is a euphemism for Westernization, that is, the discourse of globalization is a Western hegemonic imposition on the rest of the world in the mode of cultural imperialism. Rather than viewing globalization as a narrow, economistic and exploitative process, the paper suggests that globalization is to be understood as a multi-dimensional process. As such, a more careful look at the various dimensions of globalization in all their complexities and contradictions is in order. The paper also argues against the popular myth that, as a mega-process affecting all aspects of our life, globalization unleashes destructive consequences by erasing differences, leading to a homogenized world. The paper takes issue with the popular criticism of globalization as global pillage and attempts to re-emphasize the notion of global village. Taking a dispassionate view of this process, this paper suggests that a return to the original usage is necessary, reiterating the heterogeneous and multi-cultural features of globalization processes that open possibilities for further theoretical and empirical explorations