ABSTRACT

The expression "Third World," which came into general use in the 1960s, should be treated with caution, since it can be used to cover a great variety of geographical, economic, political, and cultural phenomena. In the Muslim lands on the southern and eastern shores of the Mediterranean, a parallel for this nationalism based on language can be found in the role played by Arabic. More effective was the growing resentment among the elite within each state at the extent to which their economies were owned by foreign businesses—at first British and then North American. Black nationalism was great potential force among the black majority in South Africa, but it was alarming not only to four million whites but also to two million Coloureds and the near-million Indians. One substantial victory achieved by communism in Latin America—the establishment under Fidel Castro of a communist party dictatorship in Cuba—was consolidated during the 1960s, but the limitations of this victory became clearer.