Myths, state expansion, and the birth of globalization
Subtitle: a comparative perspective
By: Jon D. Carlson
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
Published: 2012
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 239
ISBN-13: 9780230120884
Subjects: Nation-state and globalization; Imperialism; The State; History
Description: Myths are important, yet overlooked. Myths, dreams, desires and false information prime the pump of imperial expansion, which explains how new regions of the world get absorbed into the expanding world system. This book explores the role that information plays in the expansion of the state system. High risk, high return behavior subsidizes later "rational" strategies. The Northwest Passage, Prester John, West African rivers of gold, and Marco Polo's silver-roofed land of Zipangu all provide examples. Not merely an artifact of history, accurate information acquisition and dissemination continues to be relevant, as myths still drive markets and political decision-making.
Table of contents: title: Broadening and deepening: systemic expansion, incorporation and the zone of ignorance; title: New world empires & otters: the scramble for Nootka Sound, the Northwest Passage, and the China trade; title: West Africa & the rise of Asante: rivers of gold, a short route to China, and the globalization of labor; title: Ethiopia & the Middle East: the Red Sea trade, Prester John and Christians in the Muslim world; title: Japan & the Far East: Zipangu, roofs of silver and the lure of the Orient; title: Conclusion: myths, incorporation & systemic expansion.