Outlines of a Global Power-Field (GPF) Theory (Part 1)

Mapping the Dynamics of the Modern World-System and its Penetration in the Middle East c. 1850-1950

Authors

  • Omer Awass American Islamic College

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5195/jwsr.2021.1031

Keywords:

Modern world-systerm, global power-field, mode of governmentality, division of sovereignty, peripheralization, Ottoman Empire

Abstract

This essay takes modern world-system theory and maps it into a political-economic field of power. This re-modeling of the theory better illustrates the diffuseness and the spatiality of the operations of global forces; thus, helping us have a greater appreciation of the durability and scope of Western economic and political hegemony across the world. Our exposition also tracks the structural transformation undergone by the Global Power-Field (GPF) throughout its history showing the evolving character of its dominance. Moreover, this field paradigm does not restrict its considerations to matters of political economy but also centralizes factors of politics and international relations that play a fundamental a role in driving historical dynamics. The workings of this emerging model are then illustrated by a historical case study from the Middle East: The nineteenth and early twentieth century Ottoman Empire.

Author Biography

Omer Awass, American Islamic College

Omer’s research interests center on religion, modernity, and globalization. He is carrying out field research on contemporary fatwas in the Muslim world as a way to assess how they are negotiating their postcolonial realities. He has recently published articles in the Journal of the American Academy of Religion, Journal of World-Systems Research, Sociology of Islam Journal, and The Muslim World Journal. He has spent more than twelve years of his life studying, researching, and teaching in various African and Asian countries like Malaysia, Indonesia, India, Iran, Syria, Egypt, Turkey, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Morocco, Kenya, Senegal, and Tanzania.

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Published

2021-08-14

How to Cite

Awass, O. (2021). Outlines of a Global Power-Field (GPF) Theory (Part 1): Mapping the Dynamics of the Modern World-System and its Penetration in the Middle East c. 1850-1950 . Journal of World-Systems Research, 27(2), 545–565. https://doi.org/10.5195/jwsr.2021.1031

Issue

Vol. 27 No. 2 (2021): Summer/Autumn 2021

Section

Research Articles

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