Globalization and Culture
1. Edition March 1999
248 Pages, Softcover
Wiley & Sons Ltd
Globalization is now widely discussed but the debates often remain
locked within particular disciplinary discourses. This book brings
together for the first time a social theory and cultural studies
approach to the understanding of globalization.
The book starts with an analysis of the relationship between the
globalization process and contemporary culture change and goes on
to relate this to debates about social and cultural modernity. At
the heart of the book is a far-reaching analysis of the complex,
ambiguous "lived experience" of global modernity. Tomlinson argues
that we can now see a general pattern of the dissolution between
cultural experience and territorial location. The "uneven" nature
of this experience is discussed in relation to first and third
world societies, along with arguments about the hybridization of
cultures, and special role of communications and media technologies
in this process of "deterritorialization". Globalization and
Cultureconcludes with a discussion of the cultural politics of
cosmopolitanism.
Accessibly written, this book will be of interest to second year
undergraduates and above in sociology, media studies, cultural and
communication studies, and anyone interested in globalization.
Globalization as Complex Connectivity.
Culture as a Dimension of Globalization.
Why Culture Matters for Globalization.
Why Globalization Matters for Culture.
2. Global Modernity. .
Global Modernity as Historical Period. Globalization as a
'Consequence of Modernity'.
Suspicion of Global Modernity.
Conclusion.
3. Global Culture: Dreams, Nightmares and Scepticism.
Dreams: Historical Imaginings of a Global Culture.
Nightmares: Global Culture as Cultural Imperialism.
Global Culture: The Sceptical Viewpoint.
4. Deterritorialization: The Cultural Condition of
Globalization. .
The Concept of Deterritorialization.
The Mundane Experience of Deterritorialization.
Objections to Deterritorialization.
Deterritorialization at the 'Margins'.
Hybridization.
5. Mediated Communication and Cultural Experience. .
Mediation and Connectivity.
Mediated Proximity 1: Intimacy Redefined.
Mediated Proximity 2: Televisual Involvement and the Closing of
Moral Distance.
6. The Possibility of Cosmopolitanism. Cosmopolitanism: Idea,
Ideology, Ideal.
Cosmopolitans Without a Cosmopolis.
Notes.
Bibliography.
Index.
that makes Globalization and Culture a worthy introductory text. It
is also in the way that the book manages to anchor key issues such
as deterritorialization in specific case examples and practical
illustrations ... [It] is a sophisticated, balanced, and highly
readable book, further marking Tomlinson as a persuasive critical
voice in the burgeoning globalization debate."
Scope
"It is often argued that culture has been a neglected aspect of
globalization. John Tomlinson provides us at last with a book which
systematically explores the centrality of culture to debates on
globalization. He does so with a refreshing clarity in a text which
is to be commended for its coherence and accessibility."
Mike Featherstone, Nottingham Trent
University
"It is frequently maintained that discussions of globalization
have been marginalized within culture studies. John Tomlinson's
book, Globalization and Culture, contributes to new work
that attempts to address this issue and brings a cultural studies
approach to the the concept of globalization."
The Year's Work in Critical and Cultural
Theory
