Narratives of Globalization: Reflections on the Global Condition - Hardcover

Julian C. H. Lee

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 178348442X ISBN 13: 9781783484423

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield International, 2015

Synopsis

Globalization can sometimes seem like an abstract concept, an unconscious aspect of our everyday existence. What impact does it have on the reality of our daily lives? How does it shape our experiences, perspectives and identities? Narratives of Globalization explores how a range of key ideas in the study of globalization are made manifest in the lives of people all over the world. Each chapter explores a key theme in globalization studies that is explored through a narrative that draws on the contributors own personal experience. It draws together a collection of experiences from across the globe including Chinese migration to Australia, the influence of the internet on education and the popularity of K-pop. These personal perspectives on culture, identity, development and politics attempt to better understand contemporary issues within the global frame and illustrate how ordinary people can engage with and influence processes of globalization.

About this title

About the Author

Julian CH Lee is a Lecturer in Global Studies, School of Global, Urban and Social Studies, RMIT University, Australia.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Narratives of Globalization

Reflections on the Global Condition

By Julian C. H. Lee

Rowman & Littlefield International, Ltd.

Copyright © 2016 Julian C. H. Lee
All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-78348-442-3

Contents

Foreword Joseph M. Siracusa, 
Acknowledgments, 
1 Introduction: Reflections on the Global Condition Julian C. H. Lee, 
2 On Culture and Hybridity: 'Gangnam Style' and the Inventiveness of Tradition Julian C. H. Lee, 
3 On Transculturation: Re-enacting and Remaking Latin American Dance and Music in Foreign Lands Elizabeth Kath, 
4 On Non-Places: Localizing the Global at Changi Airport's Terminal 3, Singapore Chris Hudson, 
5 On the Global Image: Globalization as a Visual-Ideological Phenomenon Tommaso Durante, 
6 On the World Wide Web: Disrupting Education in the Digital Age Debra Bateman, 
7 On Neoliberalism and Welfare: Payday Lending and Commodifying Social Provisioning Marcus Banks and Greg Marston, 
8 On Language and Interculturality: Teaching Languages and Cultures for a Global World Chantal Crozet, 
9 On Diversity and Language: My Route through Different Cultures, Languages, and Ideologies Lynne N. Li, 
10 On a Global Moral Economy: Young People and Engaging with Others in Need Rebekah Farrell, 
11 On Universal Human Rights: Universality and Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights Ian Howie, 
12 On Global Security: International Law, Use-of-Force and Hegemony Aiden Warren, 
13 Afterword Julian C. H. Lee, 
References, 
Index, 
About the Contributors, 

CHAPTER 1

Introduction

Reflections on the Global Condition

Julian C. H. Lee

This book has its beginnings in the office of Professor Joseph Siracusa. 'Philosophers used to be concerned about what it meant to be human', he said during one of our conversations there. 'But now', he continued, 'the question is, what does it mean to be human in the age of globalization?'

His question points to the way that our lives are fundamentally intertwined with people, entities and processes of which we often have little understanding, about which we frequently have little awareness, and over which we often feel that we have little influence. In our attempts to know ourselves, his question leads us towards the fact that now, more than ever, this cannot be done without understanding ourselves as part of a globalized world.

But the word 'globalization' is now commonplace. What globalization means has been and remains indistinct and dependent on context. Siracusa notes that globalization 'is a hotly contested term. There are all kinds of encyclopedias and handbooks on what globalization is' (RMIT 2014). The historian Paul Battersby adds that it is a broad concept that 'means many different things to many different people' (ibid.). With such diversity being the case, the reader will forgive us for not confining its meaning by providing a definition, instead allowing the meanings of the term to come through in the course of this book's chapters. As the anthropologist Eve Darian-Smith writes, there is value 'in the process of arguing about what the field of global studies is and could be, rather than coming up with any definitive answer' (2015: 165).

That the world is 'global' or 'globalized' is also now taken for granted. In the same way as we are unable to perceive an aroma when we spend too long in its midst, a problem in thinking about ourselves in a global context is that 'globalization' is now so omnipresent that we can sometimes fail to detect its influence, even though its effects are all around us, i

Edition details

• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield International
• Publication date: 2015
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 178348442X
• ISBN 13: 9781783484423
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 208
• Editor: Julian C. H. Lee