The Spiral of Capitalism and Socialism: Toward Global Democracy / Edition 1

by Terry Boswell, Christopher Chase-Dunn

Overview

At the core of this book is the argument that, though the word "socialism" is widely held in disdain in the current discourse about the world's past and its future, the idea of socialism as collective rationality and popular democracy is far from dead.

Boswell and Chase-Dunn describe a spiral of capitalism and socialism--of economic expansion and social progress--that creates repeated opportunities for positive transformation at the global level. They contend that social democracy is both desirable and possible at the level of the world-system. And they present a straightforward, compelling case in support of that contention.

The book begins with an explanation of the structural dynamics of the world-system and goes on to explore the great failures, and the limited successes, that were the outcome of efforts to build a state-socialist "second world." A final section addresses the possible futures of the world-system and, especially, how to move realistically toward global democracy.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781555878498
Publisher:	Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	01/28/2000
Series:	Political Sociology Series
Edition description:	SPIRAL
Pages:	281
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 1.25(h) x 9.00(d)

Table of Contents

	List of Tables and Figures	ix
	Preface	xi
	Introduction: Global Democracy	1
1	The Political Economy of the Capitalist World-System	17
2	World Revolutions and the Political Economy of Socialism	51
3	The Revolutions of 1989	97
4	The Spiral of Capitalism and Socialism	131
5	Getting Past the Post	159
6	The Future of the World-System	199
	References	247
	Index	265
	About the Book	281