globalisation, modernity and postmodernity
modernity and globalisation
modern society - key featues
the nation state - a bounded territory ruled by a powerful centralised state, population
shares the same language and cultrue, organises social life on a national basis, has
created administrative bureaucracies and institutions to regulate their citezens lives,
source of identity for citizens
capitalism - economy is based on private ownership of means of production and the
use of wage labourers - brought about the industrialisation of modern society with hug
increases in wealth (for a few, resulting in class conflict) - production is organised on
Fordist principles (mass production of standardised products in large factories using
low skilled labour) - rise in the standard of living
rationality, science and technology - secular and scientific thinking replace magico-
religious explanation of the world - increase in technically efficient forms of
organisation in social and economic life - science becomes increasingly important
individualism - tradition, custom and ascribed status become leff important -
experience creater personal freedom and choice - structual inequalities such as class
remain important in shaping identity and restricting their choices
globalisation
until recently - nation state provided the basic framework for peoples lives - but we
are now increasingly affected by globalisation (the increasing interconnectedness of
people across national boundaries)
1. technological changes
we can now cross entire continents in a matter of hours, satelite communication, the
internet and global television have created a time space compression - closing the
distances between people
technology brings risks on a global scale - Beck's 'risk society' - increasingly the
threats to our well being come from human made technology rather than natural
disasters
1. economic changes
economic activity now takes place within a set of global networks that are creating
ever greater interconnectedness
the global economy is increasingly an electric economy - rather than producing
physical goods, information is being produced, distributed and consumed through
global electronic networks
in the electric economy money never sleeps - global 24hour financial transactions
permit the instantaneous transfer of funds around the world
trans national companies - operate across frontiers and organise production on a
global scale - most are western based
, so powerful are the small elite who control these companies, they now form a separate
global capitalist class - Sklair
1. political changes
some sociologists - globalisation has undermines the power of the nation state - we
now live in a 'borderless world' in which TNCs and consumers have more economic
power than national governments - states less able to regulate large capitalist
enterprises
this is unlike the organised capitalism seen in the modern period - now 'disorganised
capitalism'
1. changes in culture and identity
globalisation - makes it harder for cultures to exist in isolation from one another
a major reason for this - the role of information and communications technology (esp
mass media)
we live in a global culture - western owned media companies spread western culture
economic integration also encourages a global culture - TNCs sell the same consumer
goods in many countries - similar tastes across national borders
increased movement of people also helpes to create a global culture
undermines the traditional sources of identity e,g, class - the shift of manufacturing
from the west to developing countries - fragmentation and decline of working class
communities
explaining the changes
are we no longer living in modernity - in a new postmodern society?
do we need new theories to understand society today?
is the enlightenment project still viable? have rapid changes made society too chaotic
for us to understand and control?
Postmodernism
a major intellectual movement that has emerged since the 1970s
argue we are now living in a new era of postmodernity
postmodernity is an unstable, fragmented, media saturated global village, where
image and reality are indistinguishable - we define ourselves by what we consukmme
a fundamental break with modernity
knowledge
there are no sure foundations to knowledge
the enlightenment project of achieving progress through true, scientific knowledge is
dead - if we cannot guarantee our knowledge is correct, we cannot use it to improve
society
an all embracing theory that claims to have the truth about how to create a better
society is a mere meta narrative - someones version of reality but not the truth
these have been used to create oppressive totalitarian states that impose their version
of the truth on people
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