scholarly journals Michel Houellebecq and the International Sexual Economy

2004 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas Morrey
Keyword(s):  
Global Economy ◽  
Third World ◽  
Theoretical Work ◽  
Global Capitalism ◽  
Cultural Economy ◽  
Narrative Strategies ◽  
The Third ◽  
Michel Houellebecq ◽  
French Writer ◽  
The Third World

This paper explores the notion of an ‘international sexual economy’ in the work of the French writer Michel Houellebecq, and particularly his latest novel, Plateforme (2001). Houellebecq suggests that, since westerners no longer have the time or the inclination to sleep with each other, and since those in the third world have nothing to sell but their bodies, the exchange of cash for sex on a truly international scale is likely to represent the most lucrative sector of the global economy in the coming century. Whilst acknowledging the objections to this idea, the paper shows how it is based in a serious analysis of global capitalism which has something in common with the theoretical work of Jean-François Lyotard, in terms of both the postmodern and the libidinal economies. The paper further suggests that the virulent anti-psychologism of Houellebecq’s often brutal worldview implies a (largely undeclared) kinship with Friedrich Nietzsche. Finally, it offers an analysis of the ironic narrative strategies in Plateforme that are interpreted as the consequence of trying to criticize the cultural economy without being able to position oneself outside it.

Warfare, oracles and iron: a case study of production among the pre-colonial Klowe, in the light of some recent Marxist analyses

Africa ◽  
1984 ◽  
Vol 54 (2) ◽  
pp. 29-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Brown
Keyword(s):  
Third World ◽  
Theoretical Work ◽  
Central Place ◽  
Marxist Theory ◽  
The Third ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Opening Paragraph ◽  
The Third World

Opening ParagraphIt is perhaps surprising that the recent resurgence of interest in the application of Marxist theory to the study of the historically non-capitalist societies of the Third World should have focused, at least in part, upon the stateless societies of Africa. To some extent, this interest in some of the least differentiated and least class-stratified of societies can be related to the fundamental problematic of Marxist sociology: the characterization of the stage of advanced communism, which remains so obscure in Marx's own theoretical work. An understanding of the dynamics of ‘primitive’ communism might be seen, therefore, as an essential precursor to this underlying concern. Certainly, the often highly tendentious views of Marxist writers on such issues as the definition of the state and the extent of exploitation in the primitive communist mode can be related to this need. However, the rise of Marxist anthropology has not only been presented as a problem of general evolutionary theory. Other influences have been offered to account for the new concern, the most widely cited being the supposed crisis of functionalism, and the resulting necessity for a complete reorientation of the whole discipline of anthropology. Stateless societies, having long occupied a central place in the field of anthropological enquiry, and yet outwardly presenting such simplicity of form, offer a particular challenge to the radical, and in several recent works have been interpreted in what is claimed to be a novel and distinctive way.

The Global Economy and the Third World: Coalition or Cleavage?

1977 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 584-609 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas C. Smyth
Keyword(s):  
Regional Differences ◽  
Global Economy ◽  
Third World ◽  
General Assembly ◽  
Special Session ◽  
Monetary Reform ◽  
Economic Issues ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Third World ◽  
Economic Growth Rates

Positions taken by delegations in the U.N. General Assembly during debates of the Sixth and Seventh Special Sessions are analyzed to determine clustering on economic issues and their sources. Third-World states took positions consistently distinct from those of Eastern and Western countries, and economic attributes appear to explain this. Differences within the Third World were not consistent, however, and were more apparent in the Seventh Special Session. Divisions found between Third-World states on issues such as resource allocations and monetary reform included: states with slow versus fast economic growth rates; states dependent on Western versus Eastern aid; and regional differences. Neither OPEC nor a “fourth world” appeared distinct from the Third World as a whole. Coalitions, varying by issue, appeared to overlap to build the Third-World “bloc.”

Foreign Debt and Prospects for Growth in Africa During the 1980s

1985 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-74 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adebayo Adedeji
Keyword(s):  
International Economic ◽  
World War Ii ◽  
Global Economy ◽  
Third World ◽  
Foreign Debt ◽  
International Economic Order ◽  
World War ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Rich ◽  
The Third World

One of the major objectives sought by the New International Economic Order is to secure favourable conditions for the transfer of resources to the Third World, and to ensure that they are fully utilised for the development of the countries concerned.1 However, the unprecedented growth of the global economy since World War II has not been equitably distributed between the rich and poor nations. Unfortunately, within this international scenario, the increasing external indebtedness of the latter has had, and still has, wide-ranging domestic implications that have rocked the foundations on which many African economies stand.

The Third World in the Global Economy

1993 ◽  
pp. 286-322
Author(s):  
Paul Cammack ◽  
David Pool ◽  
William Tordoff
Keyword(s):  
Global Economy ◽  
Third World ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Third World

scholarly journals 20. Jahrhundert mit beschränkter Haftung: Kapital, Arbeit und Bürokratie im Zeitalter des Nationalismus

1995 ◽  
Vol 25 (100) ◽  
pp. 381-408 ◽  
Author(s):  
James O'Connor
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Eastern Europe ◽  
20Th Century ◽  
Third World ◽  
Western Europe ◽  
Global Capitalism ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Third World ◽  
Transformation Processes ◽  
The Welfare State

With the aid of three categories - which are not only meant geographically -"West" (Western Europe and North America), "East" (Eastern Europe) and "South" (the Third World), the main features of the transformation processes ofthe 20th century are analysed: the interrelations between capital, labor and community, the development and integration of the different oppositional movements, the rise of bureaucracy and the welfare state and their following decline, the importance of nationalism and national states and the transition to a global capitalism.

Global capitalism and major corporations from the Third World

2002 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 81-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leslie Sklair ◽  
Peter T Robbins
Keyword(s):  
Third World ◽  
Global Capitalism ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Third World
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