The Positive Impact of Globalization on the World
Dannenberg et al. (2018) are of the viewpoint that the notion of the process of globalization has positively impacted not only the business world but the entire world in general. As opined by White (2018), the process of globalization although an ancient one gained popularity in the latter part of the 19th century with the improvement of the transport and communication services. This can be related to the invention of the telegraphic system and also the steam boats which not only furthered the cause of the business enterprises but at the same time changed the status quo of the world in a substantial manner as well (Shabir et al. 2015). In this regard, it needs to be said that the publication of the book “The World is Flat” by Thomas Friedman gave rise to the concept that the contemporary world in which the people dwell is a flat one rather than a round one because of the changes brought in by globalization and other modern constructs like economic changes, political changes and others (Friedman and Wyman 2005). This essay will argue the fact that the contemporary world is a flatter one rather than a round one because of the changes brought in by globalization and other similar constructs in the particular light of the theories Marxism and Network theory.
Heilbron, Boncourt and Sorá (2018) are of the viewpoint that the status quo of the world has undergone a substantial amount of change in the recent because of the process of globalization and also the emergence of the diverse kinds of innovative technologies. As opined by Birkland (2015), the process of globalization has not only interconnected the diverse business enterprises of the world but also the people of the world in a substantial manner. In this regard, it needs to be said that the different people of the world unlike the earlier times are being able to communicate with each other taking the help of the different kinds of innovative technologies and also the process of globalization (Heilbron and Gingras 2018). This in turn has changed the status quo of the international system of the present day in a substantial manner which in turn has increasingly made the world a flatter one. For example, in the earlier times the world was considered to be round because of the notion that it was difficult for the people from one place to communicate in an effective manner with the people from the other parts of the world and also because of the different boundaries that existed which inhibited the same process (Borjian 2017). However, in the recent times with the fall of the Berlin Wall, the emergence of Netscape, Work Flow Software, outsourcing and others the world is increasingly being seen as flat by the people (Otsubo 2015). This in turn has important repercussions not only for the international system but at the same time its various related aspects like the political system, economic system and others (Guillotin 2018). More importantly, diverse people hold conflicting viewpoints regarding the effectiveness as well as the significance of this change which has taken place within the international system of the contemporary world (Borjian 2017).
The Concept of a Flat World
As opined by Guillotin and Mangematin (2015), the change in the status quo of the current international system can be traced in the political character of the modern day states, economic growth of the contemporary world, the spread of diverse kinds of networks in the contemporary times and also the increasing number of revolutions that the modern world is facing. For example, one of the most important aspects on the basis of the fact on which it can be argued that the world is getting flatter rather than round is the change in the political condition of the diverse states of the world (Cichob?azi?ski 2015). In this regard, it needs to be said that in the earlier times the notion of Marxism was a predominant one which used to dictate the actions of the diverse states. It is pertinent to note that Marxism is a socioeconomic theory which tries to analyze the working mechanism of the modern states and also the relation between the workers and the business enterprises (Lorange, Ichijo and de Onzoño 2018).
One of the most important aspects of this theory is the fact that the various states have been constructed so as to extract the maximum amount of benefit from the workers. For example, the theory states that the diverse states merely use the workers and their labor for the attainment of its own selfish needs and thus they relegate the affairs of the workers completely to the background (Guillotin and Mangematin 2015). The net result of this is the fact that the various states have prospered since the traditional times at the cost of the hard labor of the workers. This in turn puts the workers at a great disadvantage and because of this Marx propounded the notion of “dictatorship of the proletariat” (Borjian 2017). Lorange, Ichijo and de Onzoño (2018) are of the viewpoint that this can be seen as a utopian concept which articulates the idea that there will come a time when the workers will get their due from the various states and its machineries for the labor that they have given for the growth of these states. However, in the recent times it is seen that the concept of Marxism has undergone a drastic change and is no longer being followed by the different states. In this regard, it needs to be said that the major concept which is being followed by the different states in the contemporary times is capitalism (Heilbron, Boncourt and Sorá 2018). For example, contrary to the theory of Marxism the contemporary states are focusing on the factor of profitability rather than the interests of the workers. The net result of this is the fact that the interests of the workers are placed at a secondary pedestal and the interests of the business enterprises are placed at the primary pedestal (White 2018). This is in affirmation with the viewpoint of Friedman regarding the modern state and also the manner in which it has become flat rather than round.
Change in Political Character of Modern States
The flatness of the world is even perceptible in the economic growth of the world in the recent times. For example, it is seen that the process of globalization has opened up new gateways or windows of opportunities for the diverse business enterprises of the world in the recent times because of the interconnectedness of international trade and commerce (Dannenberg et al. 2018). This can be seen as the net result of the improvement of the processes of communication and transportation in the recent times because of the technological advancements of the world. For example, it is seen that the diverse modern business enterprises regardless of the nation in which they are originally based are increasingly taking the help of the process of globalization or internationalization and establishing their business centers in different nations of the world (Heilbron, Boncourt and Sorá 2018).
Dannenberg et al. (2018) are of the viewpoint that this has not only positively affected the international business world but at the same time the world economy as well. In this regard, it is seen that the establishment of business centers in the diverse nations of the world has not only improved the economic conditions of the different nations but at the same time the prospects of these international business enterprises as well (Heilbron and Gingras 2018). This in turn is directly related to the economic growth of the nations since the nations get a part of the profit that the different business enterprises are making as part of taxes and other kinds of tariff charges (Shabir et al. 2015). This is perhaps one of the major reasons why the national governments of the diverse nations of the world are increasingly focusing on the growth of trade and commerce. Furthermore, this growth of international business and its relation to the growth of international economy can be explained on the basis of network theory which has gained a substantial amount of prominence in the recent times (Guillotin and Mangematin 2015).
Lorange, Ichijo and de Onzoño (2018) are of the viewpoint that this theory tries to analyze the economic growth of the diverse nations of the world on the basis of analysis of different kinds of gaps and charts. More importantly, they also take into effective consideration the factor of the degree to which the economy of one nation is interconnected or interlinked with the national economy of the other nations of the world (Borjian 2017). For example, when the economy of the economic block European Union is taken into consideration it becomes apparent that the economic prospects of the diverse members of the European Union is interlinked with the other member states of the block (Guillotin 2018). This dependence in turn has given rise to the interconnection of the economy of the economic block under discussion which has been able to gain success through the network that one member nation shares with the other member nations of the union (Lorange, Ichijo and de Onzoño 2018). Furthermore, it is seen that this interconnection or networking among the diverse nations have facilitated the exchange of resources among the diverse nations which in turn has improved the condition of trade and commerce in these nations (Heilbron, Boncourt and Sorá 2018). This is not only important from the perspective of the profitability of the different business enterprises but at the same time the economic growth of these nations as well. This once again affirms to Friedman’s viewpoint that the world is getting flatter rather than round.
The Flattening of Economic Growth
As opined by Friedman and Wyman (2005), one of the major effects of the change in the status quo of the world in the present times is witnessed in the increasing number of revolutions that the world is facing currently. It is pertinent to note that the revolutions that the world is facing currently are drastically different from the ones that it used to face in the earlier times (Heilbron, Boncourt and Sorá 2018). In this regard, it needs to be said that in the earlier times the revolutions were mainly concerned with the overthrow of anarchic or dictatorial power whereas in the contemporary times it is seen that the revolutions are concerned with the overthrow of misgoverning governments, terrorist rules, militant governments and others (Heilbron and Gingras 2018). For example, the crisis or the revolution which is currently undergoing in the nation of Syria is an important example of this aspect of the contemporary world which as a matter of fact proves that the world is getting flat rather than round (Shabir et al. 2015). It is pertinent to note that the citizens of Syria are fighting against the militant rule of the national government of the nation and the Prime Minister of the concerned nation (Lorange, Ichijo and de Onzoño 2018). This is in synchronicity with the notion of flatter world which states that the modern nations are becoming more chaotic and this in turn gives rise to the diverse kinds of revolutions that the modern states or nations are facing currently.
To conclude, the process of globalization and also the diverse technological innovations of the world are increasingly changing the nature of the contemporary world. Furthermore, this change is not only visible in the change in the current status quo that the world has gone in the present times but at the same time the political as well as the economic condition of the world. More importantly, the flatness of the world even becomes perceptible in the networking of the diverse nations of the world and also the numerous revolutions that has become an integral part of the contemporary world. In this regard, it needs to be said that this aspects of the modern world are in synchronicity with the precepts of Friedman which he articulated related to the characteristics of the modern flatter world in his famous book “The World is Flat”.
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