ABSTRACT

In this revised edition of Globalization in World History, Peter Stearns explores the roots of contemporary globalization, examining shifts in the global flow of people, goods and ideas as early as 1000 CE. Exploring how four moments in history have accelerated the process of globalization, Stearns’s narrative details how factors such as economics, migration, disease transmission, culture, the environment, and politics have influenced the nature of globalization as we understand it today.

This revised and updated second edition includes:

  • A broadened discussion of regional reactions to globalization, anchoring the topic in world history and allowing for discussions of nationalism.
  • A detailed look at the effects of globalization on the environment.
  • An expanded analysis of athletics, youth culture, and the problems of globalization today.
  • A supplementary online chapter-by-chapter reading guide, which provides additional background context and support for readers.

With an interdisciplinary approach that links political, sociological, and historical perspectives, Stearns’s book provides an ideal overview of the current state of globalization and the historical factors that have shaped it.

chapter 2|18 pages

Emerging Patterns of Contact, 1200 BCE–1000 CE

A Preparatory Phase

chapter 3|30 pages

1000 CE as Turning Point

The Birth of Globalization?

chapter 4|37 pages

1500 as Turning Point

The Birth of Globalization?

chapter 5|40 pages

The 1850s as Turning Point

The Birth of Globalization?

chapter 6|42 pages

Globalization since the 1940s

A New Global History?

chapter 7|5 pages

Conclusion

The Historical Perspective