Unit Four: Historical Materialism & IPE

Dr. Russell Williams

Required Reading: Cohn, Ch. 5.

Class Discussion Reading: Robert W. Cox, “Civil Society at the Turn of the Millennium:

Prospects for an Alternative World Order,” Review of International Studies, 25 (1999), pp. 3-28.

Shaun Breslin, “Power and production: rethinking China’s global economic role”, Review of International Studies, Vol. 31, No. 4 (October 2005), pp. 735-53.

Outline:

1. Introduction & Key Concepts

2. Marxist Economics

3. Historical Structuralism and IPE

4. Modern Approaches

5. Conclusions

1) Introduction & Key Concepts

a) Same origins as liberal approaches – focus on economic relations under capitalism and globalization “Possibilities of cooperation” (liberalism)

replaced with “structural imperatives” of capitalism E.g. Class Conflict

b) Interested in issues “discursively excluded” by Liberalism and Realism

E.g. Exploitation and Inequality

c) Key Concepts (derived from Marx):

“Mode of Production”: Basic system of production Impacts all other social relations

“Relations of Production”: Society’s laws, politics, culture and ideology The “social superstructure”

Determined by mode of production (?)

Importance of history: Specific historical & geographical settings have

different modes/relations of production

Class: Each mode of production organizes individuals

into classes

A )Those who own and control the means of production; and

b) Those who sell their labour

Class Struggle Struggle between these classes “drives” history

2) Marxist Economics:

a) Labor the basis of all value . . . Total direct & indirect labor in production

determines “true price” of product

b) Profits based on “surplus value” . . . Capitalism always exploitative

c) Increases in profit only achieved by increasing extraction of surplus value

d) Capitalism was dynamic – would spread

2) Marxist Economics cont. . . .

Key analytical claim - Capitalism based on fundamental “tensions”:

1) Economic concentration: Competitive markets produced “concentration” E.g. monopolies

2) “Falling rate of profit”: As the ratio of indirect labour (machinery) grew in relation to direct labour, there would be a steady decline in the rate of profit.

3) Growing exploitation of workers: Produced “crisis of under-consumption” Recessions and unemployment

Bottom Line: Capitalism prone towards crises and collapse (David Harvey on the Financial Crisis)

3) Historical Structuralism and IPE:

Problem: If capitalism should collapse, why does it survive and flourish?

a) Theory of Monopoly Capitalism: When capitalism became “monopolistic”, corporations

could force the state to support their activities. Prevent collapse of system

Required consideration of the role of the state . . .

Problem: If capitalism should collapse, why does it survive and flourish?

b) State-Capital relations . . . . Two theories:

“Instrumental Marxism”: State run by, or run in the direct interest of, capitalists.

State must be captured by proletariat

“Structural Marxism”: State serves interests of capitalists over the long term. Has relative autonomy in the short term.

E.g. Post war “class compromise” Overcame problem of under-consumption

Either way . . . State protects capitalism

Problem: If capitalism should collapse, why does it survive and flourish?

c) “Lenin’s Theory of Imperialism”:

Argued: Monopoly Capitalism led to imperialism –

overcome domestic falling rate of profit . . . . Lead to “New Imperialism”, nationalism and WAR!

Implications: Capitalism must be violently overthrown –

imperialism and conflict, inevitable, and good for capitalism

Impact on non-colonial societies . . . ?

4) Modern Approaches:

a) “Dependency Theory”: (Gunder-Frank and Cardosso and Faletto) Popular in Latin America and Canada

Sources:1) Marxists: Argued MNC’s from north prevented development in

south for “super-exploitation”2) Latin American Structuralism (Prebisch): Argued free trade didn’t

work for South Problem of “Declining Terms of Trade”

Claims: Developing nations exploited by powerful capitalist states Capitalism uneven: “core and periphery” = underdevelopment

South dominated by “Comprador Classes”

“Dependency Theory” implications: Radicals recommended socialist revolutions =

Breakout of global capitalism!

Moderates recommended “economic nationalism” – autonomy

“Import Substitution Industrialization (ISI)”: Tariffs to protect development of local industries

Situation could be changed . . .

Problems? Unclear concepts - economic nationalism vs. Marxism Importance of state power? Empirical problems – Success of East Asian “NIC’s”

thought to disprove theory Dependencistas do not accept this!

4) Modern Approaches:

b) “World Systems Theory”: (Wallerstein) Derived from “Dependency Theory” but focuses on geographic

exploitation of capitalism

Argues: Single world capitalist system – power comes from position in

system States organized hierarchically (Core, semi-periphery and

periphery) Logic of Marxist exploitation applied to states

E.g. Periphery are exploited for their surplus value

Problems: Vague, not widely applied Marxists criticize lack of class analysis IR scholars criticize under-theorization of state power

4) Modern Approaches:

c) Regulation Theory: (Lipietz – “regulation school”) Very “Structural Marxist” approach to IPE

Argues: States create different “regimes of accumulation” to

adapt to changing “labour process” After WWII = “Fordism” and “Taylorism”

Required Keynesianism Since 1980s= “Post-fordism”

Profit squeeze requires Neo-liberalism

Political struggle not as important as needs of capitalism However, problem of “economism”/“economic-determinism”

4) Modern Approaches:

d) “Gramscian” or “Neo-Gramscian” Theory: (Gramsci, Cox, Gill and others . . .)

Global politics understood through a Neo-Marxist class analysis

Rejects economism of Regulation Theory

Concepts:a) Interrelationship of “material capabilities”, “institutions”

and “ideas” – all impact class struggle

b) “Hegemony”: Seen as class domination - economic and ideological domination of elite class

c) “Organic Intellectuals”: Ideological organizers of class politics – Pro business groups

4) Modern Approaches:

d) “Gramscian” or “Neo-Gramscian” Theory:

Leads to different views of how global relations will evolve . . . . =E.g. Cooperation driven by the interests of MNC’s and

their global networks of production

=E.g. Cooperation driven by the programmatic replacement of the state

E.g. The “New Constitutionalism” (Gill)

Further Reading:

Dependency Theory: Joseph L. Love, "The Origins of Dependency Analysis," Journal

of Latin American Studies, 22 (February, 1990), pp. 143-68.

World Systems Theory: Christopher Chase-Dunn and Peter Grimes, “World-Systems

Analysis,” Annual Review of Sociology, 21 (1995), pp. 387-417.

Regulation Theory: Michael Dunford, “Globalization and Theories of Regulation,” in

Ronen Palan, ed., Global Political Economy: Contemporary Theories, (London: Routledge, 2000), pp. 143-167.

Gramscian Methods: Robert W. Cox, “Gramsci, Hegemony and International Relations:

An Essay in Method,” Millennium, 12-2 (1983), pp. 162-175.

Conclusions:

Strengths? Focus on concepts ignored by realism and liberalism

(Exploitation and inequality) Central emphasis on capitalism and globalization

Weaknesses? Lack of “prescription” – What is to be done? (E.g.

Regulation Theory) Confusing concepts, not widely applied Role of state power often obscured

Is this a problem?

For Next Time:

Unit Five: Contemporary Approaches - Feminism and Constructivism (October 8 & 10)

Required Reading: Cohn, Ch. 5.

Class Discussion Readings: Penny Griffin, “Refashioning IPE: What and how gender analysis

teaches international (global) political economy,” Review of International Political Economy, Oct2007, Vol. 14 Issue 4, pp. 719-736.

Rawi Abdelal, Mark Blyth, and Craig Parsons, “The Case for a Constructivist International Political Economy,” in Constructivist Political Economy (Unpublished manuscript: http://ducis.jhfc.duke.edu/wp-content/uploads/archive/documents/ABP.pdf)