The emergence of the 'Third World' is generally traced to onset of the Cold War and decolonization in the 1940s and 1950s. In the 1960s and 1970s the "three worlds of development" were central to the wider dynamics of the changing international order. By the 1980s, Third Worldism had peaked entering a period of dramatic decline that paralleled the end of the Cold War. Into the 21st century, the idea of a Third World and even the pursuit of some form of Third Worldism has continued to be advocated and debated. For some it has passed into history, and may never have had as much substance as it was credited with, while others seek to retain or recuperate the Third World and give Third Worldism contemporary relevance. Beginning with a comprehensive introduction this edited volume brings together a wide range of important contributions. Collectively they offer a powerful overview from a variety of angles of the history and contemporary significance of Third Worldism in international affairs. The question remains; did the Third World exist, what was it, does it still have intellectual and political purchase or do we live in a global era that can be described as After the Third World?
This book was previously published as a special issue of Third world Quarterly.
1 After the Third World? History, destiny and the fate of Third Worldism Mark T Berger 2 Using and abusing the concept of the Third World: geopolitics and the comparative political study of development and underdevelopment Vicky Randall 3 The rise of neo-Third Worldism? The Indonesian trajectory and the consolidation of illiberal democracy Vedi R Hadiz 4 The hares, the hounds and the African National Congress: on joining the Third World in post-apartheid South Africa John S Saul 5 The Second Age of the Third World: from primitive accumulation to global public goods? David Moore 6 Re-crossing a different water: colonialism and Third Worldism in Fiji Devleena Ghosh 7 Spectres of the Third World: global modernity and the end of the three worlds Arif Dirlik 8 Transforming centre–periphery relations: the empire of capital and the making and unmaking of the Third World Fouad Makki 9 From national bourgeoisie to rogues, failures and bullies: the contradictions of 21st century imperialism and the unravelling of the Third World Radhika Desai 10 Reconstituting the Third World? Poverty reduction and territoriality in the global politics of development Heloise Weber 11 Beyond the Third World: imperial globality, global coloniality and anti-globalisation social movements Arturo Escobar 12 Third Worldism and the lineages of global fascism: the regrouping of the global South in the neo-liberal era Rajeev Patel and Philip McMichael 13 Globalising the Zapatistas: from Third World solidarity to global solidarity? Thomas Olesen
Biography
Mark T. Berger has been Visiting Professor in the Department of Defense Analysis at the Naval Postgraduate School (Monterey, California) since July 2006. He has published over 70 articles in international journals and chapters in edited books. He is the author of The Battle for Asia: From Decolonization to Globalization (2004) and The American Ascendancy and After: Empires, Nation-States and Changing Global Orders (2009: forthcoming). He is also editor of From Nation-Building to State-Building (2007) and co-author of Rethinking the Third World: International Development and World Politics (2009: forthcoming).
