ABSTRACT
I shall begin by arguing that much of what goes under the catch-word “globalization” has in fact been a recurrent tendency of world capitalism since early-modern times. This recurrence makes the dynamics and likely outcome(s) of present transformations more predictable than they would be if globalization were as novel a phenomenon as many observers think. I shall then shift my focus on the evolutionary pattern that over the centuries has enabled world capitalism and the underlying system of sovereign states to become, as Immanuel Wallerstein puts it (Chapter 1, this volume): “the first historical system to include the entire globe within its geography.” My contention here will be that the true novelty of the present wave of globalization is that this evolutionary pattern is now at an impasse. I shall conclude by speculating on possible ways out of this impasse and on the kinds of new world order that may emerge as a result of the re-centering on East Asia of world-scale processes of capital accumulation.
