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ThisResearchBulletinhasbeenpublishedinMATtreault,RADenemark,KPThomasandKBurch(eds)(2003)RethinkingGlobalPoliticalEconomy:
EmergingIssues,UnfoldingOdysseysLondon:Routledge,4664.

Pleaserefertothepublishedversionwhenquotingthepaper.

(Z)

MetageographicalMoments:AGeohistoricalInterpretationofEmbedded
StatismandGlobalization
P.J.Taylor

Attimesitseemsthatthereareasmanyopinionsaboutglobalizationasthereareauthorswhowriteaboutit.Thisispartlyafeatureofthepeculiarlydiffuse
natureoftheliteratureonthisphenomenon:businessgurus,populistjournalistsandsocialtheoristsareallwellrepresented.Furthermore,globalizationhas
enteredthepoliticalarenaoftenbringingouttheworseinpoliticiansrangingfromthespecificandreactive,antiforeignxenophobia,tothemoregeneraland
proactive,antisocialneoliberalism.Infactglobalizationisaverymodernconcept,reflectingasitdoestheambiguitiesoflivinginaworldofmassiveand
continuoussocialchange.Mypurposehereisnottotryand'tame'theconceptbyofferingmyownnarrowdefinitionthatwoulddestroyitsauthenticity
ratherIseektoprovidebasiccoordinates,bothspatialandtemporal,throughwhichtointerpretcontemporarysocialpredicaments.

Globalizationisinherentlygeographical.Hence,therehasbeenmuchdiscussionofitsspatialcoordinates.Twoparticularperspectivesareprominent.Most
obviouslyglobalizationimpliesachangingscaleofhumanactivity:processespreviouslyoperatingatthelevelofthestatehavebeenrelocated'upwards'to
larger,includingworldwide,patternsofoperation.Amoresubtleargumentisthatglobalizationisassociatedwithafundamentalchangeinthenatureof
socialspace:fromanold'spaceofplaces'toanew'spaceofflows'.Thereisnoneedforthesetwogeographicalperspectivestobecontradictorybutinmost
studiesoneorotherofthemtendstodominatethediscussion.Thiscanusuallybeseenintheirassociatedtemporalcoordinates.Treatingglobalizationasa
shiftinscaleallowsfora'comparativeglobalization'approachwhereinhistorical'transcontinental'societiesarecomparedtocontemporaryglobalization.In
contrast,treatingglobalizationasanewformofspacemeansthattherearenoprecedents:globalizationishistoricallyunique.

Itakeneitherofthesepositionshere.Bothcanbecriticizedfortheirinabilitytodevelopanadequategeohistoricalinterpretationofglobalization.Suchan
approachrequiresanintegratedframeworkoftimeandspace.Thisisimpossiblewiththetwoperspectivesdescribedabove:thecomparativemethodelides
continuitiesandconnections,thetraditionofseeingthepresentasuniqueerasescontinuitiesandconnections.Thereis,ofcourse,averycommon
geohistoricalinterpretationofglobalizationwhichdescribesa'shrinkingworld'.Theargumentisthatimprovingtransportandcommunicationtechnologieshave
progressivelylessenedthe'frictionofdistance'culminatingwiththecontemporary'endofgeography'intheinstantaneousorganizationofinternational
financialmarkets.This'spacetimecompression'combineselementsofboththescaleandflowpositionsfasterflowsallowforlargerorganizationand
providesimportantinsightsintocontemporarysocialchangebutitisaquitelimitedasanargumentforidentifyingthespatialandtemporalcoordinatesof
globalization.Insteadofthis'whiggish'geohistory,Iwilldevelopanewargumentbaseduponmytreatmentofmodernitieswithinworldsystemsanalysis
(Taylor,1999)usingtheconceptofmetageography.

MetageographyisthetermcoinedbyLewisandWigen(1997)todescribethegeographicalstructuresthroughwhichpeopleordertheirknowledgeofthe
world.Itispartofasociety'stakenforgrantedworld.Rarelyquestionedastoitsveracityorutility,ametageographyconstitutesanunexaminedspatial
discoursethatprovidestheframeworkforthinkingabouttheworldacrossthewholegamutofhumanactivitiesandinterests.1 Butametageographyisnot
eternal.Ihistoricisetheconceptthroughaddingtheideaofamomentasacriticaltimeoftransitionbetweenmetageographies.Thisenablesmetoask,does
contemporaryglobalizationconstituteametageographicalmoment?Myroutetoansweringthisquestiontakesinthreearguments.First,Ioutlinea
geohistoricalinterpretationofthemodernworldsystemintermsofmetageographies.Thisidentifiesanembeddedstatismattheheartofourcontemporary
metageography.Second,Iconsiderthenatureofthismetageographyasanunexaminedspatialdiscoursethathasseriouslydistortedourcontemporary
understandingofthemodernworldsystem.Thisidentifiessocialscienceasanimportantvictim,which,forinstance,hasalwaysleft'internationalrelations'out
onalimb.Third,Iconsidertheevidencefortheerosionofthecurrentmetageographyunderconditionsofcontemporaryglobalizationwithparticularreference
toworldcities.Iconcludethatglobalizationcanindeedbeinterpretedasametageographicalmomentratherthanrepresentinganerosionofthestate,
globalizationisbestviewedasanerosionofembeddedstatism.

METAGEOGRAPHIESOFTHEMODERNWORLDSYSTEM
Ascollectivegeographicalimaginations,allsocietieswillhavedistinctivemetageographies.Wellknownexamplesare:thetraditionalChineseviewoftheworld
centeredonthe'middlekingdom',theMoslemdivisionoftheworldintothe'HouseofIslam'andthe'HouseofWar',themedievalChristian'TandO'mapwith
Jerusalematthecentre,andtoday'sworldpoliticalmapof'nationstates'.These'worldmaps'constituteanchorswhichtieeachsocietytobothphysicaland
metaphysicalworldstheyprovidethespatialcontextwhichmakessenseofhumansocialactivitiesandideals.Assuchtheyareasmuchaboutcosmologyas
geography,atleastinthewayweinterpretthelattertoday.

Thethesisdevelopedhereisthatinthemodernworldsystem,thebalancebetweenthephysicalandthemetaphysicalhasalteredtothedetrimentofthe
latter.FromtheEuropeandiscoveryoftheAmericas,throughthescientificrevolution,andthesecularizationofthestate,tocontemporaryglobalization,
traditionalcosmologieshavebeeninretreatfromanongoing'modernization'ofknowledge.FollowingBerman(1988)Iinterpretmodernityasindicatinga
stateofperpetualsocialchangewhichmeansthatpeoplelivinginmodernsocietyareindireneedof'anchors',suchasametageography,tohelpstabilize
theirexperiences.Sincethemodernworldsystemisthecapitalistworldeconomy(Wallerstein,1979),itisthematerialbasisofgeographythatbecomes
centraltohowtheworldisviewed.Butitispreciselythismaterialbasiswhichisthemotoroftheincessantchange.Thusitcannotbeexpectedthatasingle
metageographycansurvivethroughtheunfoldingofthecapitalistworldeconomy.Hencetherepresentativeofthemodernworldinthelistofexamplesof
metageographiesabovethemapofnationstatesisnotthemetageographyofthewholeofthehistoryofthemodernworldsystem.Inthemodernworld
therehasbeenmorethanonemetageography.

Modernityhastakenmanyformsovertimeandspacesincetheemergenceofthemodernworldsysteminthe'longsixteenthcentury'(c.14501650).Ihave
arguedelsewhere(Taylor,1999)thattherehavebeenthreeprimemodernitiesinthehistoryofthemodernworldsystem.Thesemodernconstructionswith
theircriticalsystemicrepercussionsareassociatedwiththeworldsystem'shegemoniccycles.Thefirsthegemon,theUnitedProvinces,waslargely
instrumentalincreatinganewmercantilemodernityintheseventeenthcenturywithnavigationasthekeypracticalknowledge.Thesecondhegemon,the
UnitedKingdom,waslargelyinstrumentalincreatinganindustrialmodernityinthelateeighteenthandnineteenthcenturieswithengineeringasthekey
practicalknowledge.Thethirdhegemon,theUnitedStates,waslargelyinstrumentalincreatingaconsumermodernitywithmedia/advertisingasthekey
practicalknowledge.Iargueherethateachofthesemodernitiesisassociatedwithadistinctivemetageography.

Asspatialframeworks,modernmetageographiesarebestidentifiedbytheirgeometries.Thegeographicalmetageographyofmercantilemodernityisa
topologicalmetageographyoftraderoutesextendingfromthePhilippinesinthe'farwest'totheMoluccas(theSpiceIslands)inthe'fareast'.Forindustrial
modernitythereisacentripetalmetageographywiththeworldseenasasinglefunctionalregionservinganorthAtlanticcore.Withconsumermodernitythere

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isamosaicmetageographyofnationstates,nationalmarketsinwhichtoplywares.Ineachcase,thereisametageographicalmomentwhentheoldis
erodedleavingageographicalopportunityforanewpictureoftheworldtoemerge.

Likeallgeographies,metageographieshavethreeaspects:pattern,contentandmeaning.Hence,afterconsideringtheirmetageographicalmomentIwill
brieflyconsidereachmetageographyinturnintheseterms.

Thetopologicalmetageographyofmercantilemodernity

Themetageographicalmomentwhichopenedupthewaytothefirstmodernmetageographyisthearchetypalexampleoftheprocess.Thetraditional
ChristiancosmologysimplycouldnotcontendwiththeEuropeandiscoveryoftheAmericas:addingafourthcontinentmadeanimaginationlimitedtothree
continentsredundant(Zerubavel,1992).Ofcourse,this'discovery'alsobegantheprocessthatledtothefamous'triangular'Atlantictrade.Atthesametime,
EuropeansweredevelopingroutesthroughtheIndianOceantothePacific,avoidingIslamandtheircontrolofEurasianoverlandroutes.Theendresultwas
thatbytheseventeenthcentury,for'modernEuropeans',theoceansrepresentedasetofpathwayslinkingtogetherports,plantations,forts,minesandway
stationsintoasingletradingsystem.

ThetopologyofthismetageographyisshowninFigure1.TherearefivemainEuropeanplayerswiththeoriginalSpanishandPortuguesetradingbeing
joinedbyFrench,EnglishandDutchmerchantsbytheendofthesixteenthcentury.BythemidseventeenthcenturyitistheDutchwhodominatetheoverall
pattern.TheirsuccesswasbuiltinitiallyinEurope:first,theLowCountrieslongertermcontroloftheBaltictradeand,second,theirsuccessfulstrategyof
blockingoffAntwerpfromtheseatogivethemaccesstotheRhinelandheartofwesternEurope.BeyondEurope,thepatternconsistsofanorthAtlantic
triangulartradingcorewithfurtherlinkageseastandwestwhereSpainandPortugalretainsomeinfluence.AtthecoreofthesystemlayAmsterdam,the
'world'sentrepot',whosecommercialcalendarwasorganizedaroundthereturnofthefourgreatfleetsfromtheBaltic,theLevant,WestIndiesandEast
Indies(Israel,1989,2578).Aswellasthecommodities,informationarrivedwiththefleetsandfromotherpartsofEuropetomakeAmsterdamthefirst'world
clearinghouse'forcommercialinformation(Smith,1984).

Withrespecttothelatermetageographies,themeaningofthefirstmoderncaseisparticularlyinteresting.ForthesefirstmodernEuropeans,therestofthe
worldwasviewedasacornucopia,alandofplentyfromwhichtowingreatwealth.Hencetherewasnoassumptionthattheseotherregionsoftheworldwere
inferior.Thisisinkeepingwiththereality:throughoutmercantilemodernity,EuropewasnottheleadingworldregionasFrank(1998)hassoclearly
demonstrated.ButitwasnotjustthetraditionalEuropeanaweofthe'fabulouseast'whichistobefoundincontemporaryminds,Europeanreactionsto
Africancitiessimilarlyshownoneofthelatersuperioritycomplex:Benin,forinstance,wascomparedfavourablytoAmsterdam(OliverandFage,1988,8990).
ThefirstmodernEuropeanmetageographywasonlytopologicalpreciselybecause,beyondtheAtlantic,itconsistedofmerelyfeederpathsintoestablished
Asiantradingnetworks.

Thecentripetalmetageographyofindustrialmodernity

TheindustrialrevolutioninnorthwestEuropechangedthebalanceofpowerbetweenworldregions.Assuchitgeneratedametageographicalmoment.New
production,armamentsandwealthmeantthatmilitarilyandeconomicallyEuropeanscouldtakeoverandrestructuretheworldtosuittheirownends.Ineffect
theAtlantictriangularpatternfromthetopologicalmetageographywaswritlargetoproduceworldwideEuropeancontrol.ThevictoryoftheBritishover
imperialChinainthefirstOpiumWaristhesymboliceventwhichconfirmstheoverturningofthetraditionalworldhierarchyofeastoverwest.Theworldisno
longeracornucopiawhichexiststoprofitfrom,itisplacetobedesignedforindustrialneeds.

TheresultingcentripetalmetageographyisshowninFigure2.Thepatternisextremelysimple:therearejusttworegions,anindustrialcorewiththerestof
theworldsupplyingitsneeds.TheinitialdevelopmentofindustrializationinEuropewasbaseduponlocalaccesstocoalandironoresbut,beyondthese
basics,rawmaterialsfurtherafieldweresoonneeded.Thisrequiredthecreationofnewproductionzoneswhichcameinthreeforms:first,mineralsforthe
engineers(beyondtraditionalgoldandsilvertocopper,diamonds,nickel,tin,zincandlaterpetroleumforfuelandplastics)second,industrialcropsforthe
factories(beyondtobaccotocotton,jute,oilseed,rubber,wool)andthirdfoodcrops(beyondsugartograins,meat,fruits,drinks).Ofcourse,these
developmentstooklittleheedofexistingsettlementpatternssothatlargescalemigrantlabourbecamethenorm.Typically,eachindividual'islandof
production'existedina'seaofcheaplabour':itwasacaseoflabourinfromtheouterperipheryandcommoditiesouttotheindustrialcore.Inthisway
differentpartsoftheworldbecamespecialisedinsinglecommodities.Somuchsothatcountriescametobecommonlyassociatedwithparticularcommodities.
Wellknownexamplesare:Argentinaandbeef,Australiaandwool,Brazilandcoffee,Bengalandjute,Ceylonandtea,Malayaandrubber,NewZealandand
lamb,NorthernRhodesia(Zambia)andcopper,SouthAfricaanddiamonds,Sudanandcotton,andlater,theclassiccaseofthemiddleeastandoil.

Themeaningofthismetageographyisstraightforward:asimplehumanhierarchyhasbeenconstructeddefiningEuropeansassuperiortopeoplesfromother
partsoftheworld.Combinedwithatemporalmetahistoryofprogress,astypifiedbytheWhigtheoryofhistory(Taylor,1996a,1336),legitimationwas
providedforbothprowhite,scientificracism,oftenintegratedwithaprotemperateclimate,scientificenvironmentalism,andavirulentpoliticalimperialismwith
whitesrulingnonwhites.Inbecomingcustodiansfortheunfortunatenonprogressives,imperialistsdidattempttomakethecolonies'payforthemselves',of
course,byensuringeachcolonyincludedaspecializedislandofproduction.OneoutcomewasthecelebratedworldmapoftheBritishEmpireshowingpink
areaseverywhere(Cook,1984).Appearingonthewallsofclassroomsinallcontinents,thiswasthemostwellknownexpressionofthecentripetal
metageography.

Themosaicmetageographyofconsumermodernity

Todaytheworldmapfoundonclassroomwallsismoreuniversal:itshowstheboundariesofallstatesacrosstheworld.2 Withindependentstatesreplacing
empiresthemosaicmapistrulyapostcolonialartifact.Themetageographicalmomentfromwhichitaroseasthelatestmetageographyisdecolonisation.The
firsthalfofthetwentiethcenturysawthegradualdemiseofEuropeasthe'natural'locusofworldleadership.Evenattheheightofthenewimperialismthe
emergenceofnonEuropeanworldpowersattheturnofthelastcenturyinthePacificUSAandJapansignaledachangingworldhierarchy(Bartlett,1984).
Japan,inparticular,asthefirst'nonwhite/nonEuropean'statetomakeanindependentimpactonmodernworldpoliticswassymbolicallyimportant.Although
legitimationofEuropeanrulewasincreasinglychallenged,politicalchangewasmuchslowerasreflectedintheoutcomeofthetwoworldwars:afterWorld
WarItheareaofEuropeanimperiumwasactuallyincreasedwhereastheendofWorldWarIImarkedthecriticalbeginningofitsfinaldemise.

Theworldpoliticalmapthatwasformedafter1945hasbeenidentifiedasfundamentallydifferentfromallpreviousinternationalsystems(Hinsley,1982).
UndertheauspicesoftheUN,theonlylegitimatewarsbecamewarsofdefence.Inotherwordsboundariesbecamesacrosanct.Thus.decolonisation
resultedinnewstateswithincolonialboundaries.Thisboundarymaintenanceobsessionhascreatedaremarkablestabilitytotheworldpoliticalmap:even
thelaterbreakupofcommuniststateswaskeptstrictlytoexistingboundarylinesbyalwaysmakingnewexternalsovereignboundariesoutofoldinternal
provincialboundaries.Theresultisaworldpoliticalmapwhichappearsalmost'natural',politicalboundarylines(red)shareasimilarvisualstatustocoastlines
(black),rivers(blue)andmountainranges(brown)onmapsoftheworld.Itisthisstatuswhichcreatesthemetageography.

Metageographiesarenotsimplepoliticalcreations:delegitimatingwarbytheUNcannotofitselfmakeageographicalimagination.Themosaic
metageographyisaproductofnationalism.Thepoliticalboundariesdonotjustdelimittheterritoriesofstates,theydefinethehomelandsofnations.
CombiningthepoliticalinstitutionofstatewiththeculturalattributesofnationisanineteenthcenturyEuropeanpoliticalinventionthatcreatednationalismas
aglobalmovementinthetwentiethcentury.Thebasicnationalistclaimisthatnationsarethenaturaldivisionsofhumanityexpressedthroughstatehood
(Smith,1982).Thusnationstypically'find'primevaljustificationfortheirpresenceasnationstatesanditisthisconstructed'timelessness'whichpromotesthe

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illusionofnaturalness.Hencetheworldpoliticalmapisnoordinarymap,itplaceseveryviewer,throughherorhisnationality,withinaspatialframeworkof
humanity.

TheUSAis,ofcourse,thefirstpostcolonialstate.Prenationalistinitsorigins,ithasdevelopedacivicnationalismratherthananethnicnationalismwithits
territorydeemedtobeasanctuaryfor'timelessvalues'(freedomanddemocracy)ratherthanforatimelesspeople.Hence,despiteaminorforayinto
imperialismattheturnofthetwentiethcentury,theUSAhasbeenabletoportrayitselfasanantiimperialchampion.After1945itwasabletoharnessthe
implicitdemocracywithinnationalismtocreateapostcolonial'freeworld'openforAmericanbusiness.Thesubsequent'Americaninvasion'wasby
'multinational'corporationswhoviewedtheworldpoliticalmapasanarrayof'nationalmarkets'forproductionandconsumptionoftheirgoods.3

Themeaningofthismosaicmetageographyismoresubtlethanitsforebears.Ofcourse,politicalindependencedidnoteliminatetheoldcentripetalpattern
whichlivedoninconceptssuchas'underdevelopment','ThirdWorld'orsimply'South'.Butthemosaicmetageographyincorporatesaninherentsenseof
equivalencebetweenstatesthatcanbeexpressedasaninternationalegalitariandiscoursesummedupintheslogan'developmentforall'(Taylor,1996a,
13640).InthecentripetalmetageographythecentreexperiencesprogresswhichisinherentinsuperiorEuropeansallothercivilizationsaredeemedtobe
'stagnant'.UnderAmericanhegemonytheconceptofprogressisreplacedbydevelopmentwhichisamatterofstatesnotcivilizations.Hence,thepromiseof
Americanization,theAmericandreamasworlddream,ispromotedasapossibilityforanycountryaslongasitemploysthecorrectdevelopmentpolicies.4
Originallythisinvolved'ironandsteelworksallround'as'underdevelopedcountries'attemptedtoreplicatenineteenthcenturyEuropeandevelopment.But
Americanizationgraduallyconvertednewpoliticalcitizenshipintoaneconomiccitizenshipor'consumptionship'inthefamous'postwarboom'whichwas,of
course,inlinewiththeneedsofUSmultinationalsworkinginamosaicofnationalmarkets.

EMBEDDEDSTATISM:LIVINGWITHTHELASTMETAGEOGRAPHY
Livingwithametageographyistobelargelyunconsciousofitsinfluenceonourthinkingandactivities.Itsspatialpremisesentertherealmof'commonsense'
whereinterrogationisdeemedbothunnecessaryandquiteuncalledfor.Themosaicmetageographyhasfixedanembeddedstatismintoourknowledgeof
thesocialworld.Thisisasmuchtrueofthethinkingofsocialscientists,whoaresupposedtobecriticallyawareoftheirenvirons,asitisofsocietyingeneral.
CertainlytherehavebeenimportantrecentstatementswarningusoftheperilsofunexaminedterritorialthinkingRuggie(1993)ininternationalrelationsand
Agnew(1993)inpoliticalgeographyarethemostinfluentialexamples.However,itismythesisherethatthesewarnings,whilebeingvaluablecorrectives,
havenotfullyunderstoodtheintellectualandsocialdepthofthestatismwhichtheyattack.Quitesimply,statismisembeddedinoursocietythroughthe
mosaicmetageography.

Themostcommonindicatorofembeddedstatismisacollectivelossofhistoryproducingintellectuallylonelyconceptualizations.Withnopastsituationsfor
company,thecontemporarywayofdoingthingscomestoresemblethe'naturalorder'ofthings.Thisprofoundlackofimaginationproducesaworldofno
legitimatealternatives:nationstatesareourpresentandourfuture.Suchahistorical'commonsense'canbefoundincurrentcontroversiesonthefutureof
nationalcurrencies.InthefirstsectionbelowItreattheideaofhavinga'nationalcurrency'asaclassiccaseofembeddedstatism,revealedassuchthrough
recoveringitsveryrecenthistoricalconstruction.Thisargumentstandsasapreludetoamoregeneralexplorationoftheembeddedstatismattheheartofthe
ideaoftherebeingsuchathingas'socialscience'.Thissecondsectionrevealssocialscienceasbothacreationandcreatureofstates.Theverydepthof
insidiousstateinvasionintotheworkofthosewhowouldunderstandoursocialworldisthesubjectofsectionthree.Thefactthatthefactsusedto
understandstatesareproducedbystatesIcallthem'stateistics'revealstheincestuousrelationsbetweensocialsciencesandnationstates.Ifeverthere
wasasituationwherea'declarationofinterest'wascalledforthenthisisit.Butthereisnocall,thisarrangementisall'commonsense'withinthemosaic
metageography.

Confusingnaturalwithnational:thecaseofterritorialcurrencies5

Todayweassociatecountrieswithcurrencies:Germanyanditsmark,Britainanditspoundsterling,theUSAanditsdollar,Japananditsyenandsoon.6
MostpeoplemightnotknowthatthecurrencyofThailandisthebahtbuttheywouldexpecttheretobeaspecificallyThaimoneywhatevertheirnotesare
called.Statesandcurrenciesgotogether,anindicatorofsovereigntyandforthepeopleasymbolofnationalidentity.InthewordsofHelleiner(1999,310)
thisallseems'quitenatural',howelsewouldyouexpectmoneytobearrangedacrosstheworld?

Infact,anybasicgeohistoricalconsiderationofmoneywouldsoonshowthattheassociationofstateandcurrencyisquite'unnatural'.Moneyisabout
transaction,aboutflowsbetweenplacesmodernstatesareaboutterritories,aboutboundingtransactions,truncatingflows.HenceHelleinerterms
contemporarycurrencies'territorialcurrencies',anewformofmoney.Althougheachparticularcurrencymayhavealongpedigree,theirspecificroletodayas
anationalcurrencyisuniquetoourtimes.Nationalcurrenciesarepartoftheprocessofnationstatebuilding.Sincenationstatebuildingprogressedat
differentratesindifferentplacesthesystemofnationalcurrenciesdidnotemergeatthesametimeeverywhere.Nationalcurrenciesasweknowthemtoday
wereconstructedintheperiodbetweenthemidnineteenthcenturyandthefirsthalfofthetwentiethcentury.Thusnationalcurrenciesgrewwithand
reinforcedtheemergenceofthemosaicmetageogeographyofwhichtheyarearchetypalartifacts.

Thecreationofterritorialcurrenciesrequiredtwobasicgeographicalshiftsagainstmonetaryrivals.First,theremovalofforeigncurrenciesaslegaltenderwas
necessary.Forinstance,beforenationalcurrencies,theMexicandollar('piecesofeight')operatedasasortofgeneralcurrencyacrossNorthAmerica.This,
andtheuseallotherforeignmoney,wasonlyabolishedbytheUSgovernmentinthe1850s.Second,curtailingtheissuingoflocalbanknotes,manywith
onlyalimitedrangeofrecognition,wasnecessary.Helleiner(1999,320)reportsover7,000differentnotesissuedintheUSAinthe1850s.Afterthecivilwar
thiswascontrolledthroughpubliclicensingofthebanksallowedtoissuenotesbutstandardizationdidnotcomeuntilthecreationoftheUSFederalReserve
withitsnotemonopolyin1913.Thelatterallowednotestorepresentanationalcurrencythroughusingpropagandaintheirdesign.Butanevenmore
importantnationalizationofmoneycamewiththeprovisionoflowdenominationcoinsforthepoor.Thisconfirmed'onenation,onemoney',asHelleiner
(1999,310)soaptlytermsit.

Therewasnothinginevitableaboutthisriseofnationalcurrencies.In1867theFrenchcalledaconferencetopromoteauniversalcurrencywiththeaimof
cuttingoutinefficienttransactioncostsforinternationaltrade.ThiswasduringthehighmarkofEuropeanfreetradebutinternationalliberalismwassoontobe
defeatedbynationalprotectionalismandfreetrade'sdemisetookwithitanyhopesofauniversalcurrency.Forthen,notnow.Theriseoftheeurodollar
marketinthe1960smarkedareturnofcosmopolitancurrencies,andthecurrentestablishmentoftheeuromarksanotherblowtonational,althoughnot
territorial,currencies.Ofcourse,thefactofrelativelyrecentcreationdoesnotmakenationalcurrenciesanylessofapopulistsymboltobeusedpolitically
againstinternationalfinancialmarketsandimpositionoftransnationalcurrencies.Thereisdepthtothispoliticspreciselybecauseitisintegraltothemosaic
metageography:nationalcurrencieshavebeenembeddedinourgeographicalimaginations.

Socialunitarianism,spatialcongruenceandthesocialsciencetrinity7

Although,thereisalongtraditionofponderingtherelationsbetweenpeople,peoples,andtheirenvironments,socialscienceisarelativelyrecentinvention.
Asanideaitisaproductofthenineteenthcenturybutitonlycametofullfruitionasacceptabledisciplinaryknowledgeinuniversitiesinthetwentiethcentury.
Itwasconstructedonthefrontierbetweenthemuchmoreestablishedknowledgesofnaturalscienceandthehumanities.Basedonthesimplepremisethatit
waspossibletousethemethodsoftheformertostudythesubjectmatterofthelatter,socialsciencewasdevelopedinitiallyunderthepervasiveinfluenceof
socialprogressandreform.Originallytherewasafloweringofnewseparatesocialknowledgesinorthodoxpoliticaleconomy,positivist'socialscience'and

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liberalpoliticalphilosophy.Thisearlysocialsciencedirectlyreflectedthecentripetalmetageographyofitstime.Itstheoriesandmodelswereonlydesignedas
applicableto'industrialsociety'therestoftheworld,beingnonprogressive,wasintellectuallyuninterestingandleftlargelytothecuriosityofanthropologists,
humangeographers,Orientalistsandtheirilk.

Subsequentlypoliticaleconomyhastransmutedintoeconomics,positivist'socialscience'intosociology,andpoliticalphilosophyintopoliticalscience.
AlthoughbuildinguponEuropeanantecedents,this'trinity'ofcontemporarysocialscienceswasfinallycreatedandpromotedthroughAmericanacademein
themidtwentiethcentury.Iusethewordtrinityherenotjustinthequantitysensebuttoindicateacollectivemutuality.Allthreedisciplineshavemaintained
someoftheirforebears'broaderknowledgeclaimsbutessentiallytheyhavebecomemorespecialisedconcentratingon'economy','civilsociety'and'politics'
respectively.Andthisiswherethemutualitycomesin:betweenthemtheyclaimtostudyallsocialrelationsleavingnointellectualspaceforotherdisciplines.

Thesocialsciencetrinityalsocapturedallgeographicalspaceforthemselves.Asthecentripetalmetageographydeclinedsotheold'nonindustrial'disciplines
suchasanthropologybegantoloseinfluenceintherealmsofacademe.Withthecomingofthenewmosaicmetageography,thetrinitywasexpectedto
provideknowledgeofallcountriesequallyitobligedbysimplytransferringknowledgederivedfrom'developed'countriesto'underdeveloped'countries.The
resultwasthecreationofavarietyofmodernizationanddevelopmenttheoriesfor,butnotof,'thirdworld'states.And,ofcoursethisnewsocialunitarianism
extendedtotime.Takingaparticularlynarrowviewofthescienceitwasimportingintothestudyofhumanactivities,twentiethcenturysocialscienceatits
worstofferedtimelessandspacelessknowledgebaseduponuniversaltheory.

Buttherewasahiddenpremiseinthisuniversaltheory.Embeddedstatismcontainstheremarkablegeographicalassumptionthatalltheimportanthuman
socialactivitiesshareexactlythesamespaces.Thisspatialcongruencecanbestatedsimply:the'society'whichsociologistsstudy,the'economy'which
economistsstudy,andthe'polity'whichpoliticalscientistsstudyallshareacommongeographicalboundary,thatofthestate.Howeverabstractthesocial
theory,itisnationalsocietieswhicharedescribedhoweverquantitativetheeconomicmodels,itisnationaleconomieswhicharedepictedandhowever
behaviouralthepoliticalscience,itisnationalgovernanceatissue.Fromageographicalperspectivethetrinityprovides'onescale'socialknowledgeas
directedbythemosaicmetageography.

Thisscalebiascanbebestshowninstudiesthatdealwithmorethanonestate.Thenormhasbeentocultivatecomparativeanalysesratherthanrelational
ones.Incomparativesociologyorcomparativepolitics,forinstance,theUKmightbecomparedwithFrancebutwithlittleconcernforhowthetwocountries
actuallyrelatetoeachother.Forstudyingrelationsbetweenstates,therehasemergedaspecialdisciplineofinternationalrelations(IR)whichinitsdominant
'realist'manifestationclaimstobebeyondsocialscience.Itsinternationalanarchyassumptionproscribesfindingrelationsotherthanwarandpreparationfor
war.Hencetherealmofhumansocialactivitiesabovethestateareeitherignoredinsocialscienceordeemedtobeasocial(IR).Thereisoneimportant
exception,tradetheoryineconomics.Thiswascentralintraditionalpoliticaleconomybutithasbeenmarginalisedinthemorespecialisteconomicsdiscipline
whereitplaystheroleofatimelessandplacelessmantraforpromotingfreetrade.

Thereare,ofcourse,manygoodreasonsfordevelopingsocialknowledgeatthescaleofthestate.Theriseofthemosaicmetageographyispartoftherise
ofstatesastheprimeactorsinsocialaffairs.Nolongerjustremotevehiclesforcollectingtaxestofightwars,inthenineteenthandtwentiethcenturiesstates
grewimmenselyinrelatingtotheircitizens,from'cradletograve'asthesayinggoes.Thisisthenationalizationofstatespreviouslydiscussed.Forinstance,
nationalcurrenciesledtocentralbanksthroughwhichnationalgovernmentscouldpursuemacroeconomicpoliciesofdemandand/orsupplymanagementin
thenationaleconomy.Clearlyanymeaningfulsocialknowledgeofthesetimesmusthavethestateasaprimesubject.Butifitistobeacriticalsocial
knowledgeitmustalsoappreciatethatthenationstateismuchmorethanasubject.Embeddedstatismimpliesthetrinityhasfailedinthisrespectthestate
isunexaminedattheveryheartoftheproject,howtheknowledgeisorganized.

Stateisticsandanalysis8

Withthedemiseofcosmologies,socialknowledgehasbecomefundamentallyevidential.Hencethenatureofthedataiscrucial,ithelpsdefinethe
organizationoftheknowledge.Thecommontermforsocialdatais'statistics'atermwhichderivesdirectlyfromthewordstate.Thisis,ofcourse,noaccident:
largescaledatacollectiononhumanactivitieshasitsoriginsinstateneedsandcontinuestobedominatedbystates.Hencemyportrayalofitasstateistics.

Likeallscientists,socialscientistscollectdata.However,withinsocialsciencethereislittleorno'bigscience'whereverylargesumsofmoneyarecommitted
tosolvingtheoreticalproblems.Thelatterenablesscientiststoconcentrateondevelopingmeasurementsspecificallydesignedfortheirtheoreticalpurposes.
Insocialscience,mostdatathatiscollectedrelatestosmallscalecumulativescientificactivity.Togetanevidentialhandleonbigissues,researchersnormally
relyonthestatisticsthatareavailable,thatistosay,alreadycollected.Collectioniscarriedoutusuallybyastateagencyfortheparticularneedsof
governmentpolicy,not,ofcourse,forsocialscienceresearch.Buttheproblemismuchmorethanthepossibilityofhavingtouseunsuitabledata.Basing'big
socialscience'onstateisticsmeansthatthestatedefinesthebasicdimensionsoftheleadingedge'macro'socialresearchandthereforetheframework
withinwhichmostsocialresearchisconducted.Thisisclearlydemonstratedinthedominanceofattributemeasuresoverrelationalmeasuresinsocial
research.

Measurementcantakeoneoftwoforms:attributemeasuresonobjectsorrelationalmeasuresbetweenobjects.Theneedsofsocialscienceandthestate
divergeatthisverystartingpoint.Alltheoryabouthumansocialactivitiesisbasicallyaboutrelationsbetweenindividuals,groupsandotherhuman
collectivities.Thereforethedataneedisforrelationalmeasures,offlows,connections,linkagesandotherlesstangiblerelations.Theprimeconcernofthe
statefordatahasalwaysbeenaccounting,findingoutnumbersofphenomenonwithinitsterritoryorpartsthereof.Thusthevastmajorityofstatisticsarelists
ofattributesbyplaceasanyquickbrowsethroughacensusvolumewillconfirm.Butsocialscientistsrelyonthesestateisticsandtheyhaveusedintelligent
waysofgettingroundtheattributebias.Forinstance,adynamicswithoutrelationsisdefinedcommonlyintermsofchangingattributemeasuresacrossaset
ofcensusdates.Moresophisticatedstill,relationsthemselvesareredefinedasnotbetweenobjectspersebutasoccurringbetweentheattributemeasures
ontheobjects.Thewholetoolboxofmathematicalstatisticsoncovariationhasbeendevelopedtocoverthissleightofhand.

Finallyitshouldbenotedthatthroughitsassociationwiththestatethesocialsciencetrinityhascreatedanothercriticaldominance,thatofanalysisover
synthesis.Therearemanyreasonsforthisrangingfromtheproblemsolvingreformoriginsofmuchsocialknowledgethroughtosimpleemulationofsupposed
'scientificanalysis'.Certainlyanalysisbecameinstitutionalizedthroughexpectationsofjournaleditorsandpeerreferees,andconsequentlythroughthe
rewardmechanismswithinuniversities.Analysisalsodirectlyreflectedthenatureofthetrinityinbeingadivisionofsocialknowledgeeschewingtraditional
socialsynthesis.Themoresyntheticdisciplines,suchashumangeography,werethosewhichdeclinedwiththecentripetalmegageography.Infact,inorder
fortheminordisciplinestosurvive,synthesishadtobeabandonedandanalysis,intheformofthetrinity,internalizedintotheirdisciplinaryorganization.Thus
theadjectivessocial,economicandpoliticalhavebeenaddedtoanthropology,geographyandevenhistoryinthetwentiethcenturytodefinenew
'subdisciplines'toguardagainstthedangerofresurgentsynthesis.Thesubdisciplineshavebecomevehiclesofanalysisandassuchcontributed,albeitina
minorway,toconstructingtheunitarianmodernizationanddevelopmentmodelsthusbetrayingtheirdisciplinaryorigins.

Embeddedstatismworksinmysteriousways,butitisnotuniversal.Dependentonthemosaicmetageography,thetrinity'sdemisewillbenighwhenwiththe
nextmetageographicalmoment.

CONTEMPORARYGLOBALIZATIONASANEWMETAGEOGRAPHICALMOMENT
Ametageographicalmomentdefinesatransitioninourcollectivegeographicalimagination.Itmarksthedisintegrationofanexistingmetageographyand
providestheopportunitiestocreateanewmetageography.Itisnot,ofcourse,instantaneous,butthereshouldbeaclearcutchangeinthewaytheworldis
viewedandinterpreted.Thus,ifweareconsideringthepresentasametageographicalmomentweshouldbesearchingforevidenceofanerosionof

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embeddedstatism,ofaseriousdeclineinacceptanceofthestateasthe'natural'locusofpoweracrossthegamutofhumansocialactivities.Ateventhe
mostcursorylevelofconsideration,globalizationseemstofitthebillasametageographicalmoment.

Atitsheartmostofthedebateaboutglobalizationhasbeenconcernedwiththefutureofthestate.Forinstance,DavidHeldandhiscolleagues(1999,210)
alignpositionsonglobalizationalongaspectrumwiththe'hyperglobalists'atoneendandthe'sceptics'attheother.Theformerdefinea'globalage'andthe
endofthestate,thelatterenhanced'internationalization'withstatesremainingaskeyactorswithinregionalblocs.Inbetweenarethe'transformationists'who
accepttheunprecedentedlevelsofglobalinterconnectnessbutviewthisastransformingstatepowernoteliminatingit.Partoftheproblemwiththisargument
isthatthedebatewassetbythehyperglobalistswhichhasproducedaglobalversusstateagenda.Thetransformationaliststrytofreethemselvesfromthis
simpleoppositionbutindoingsotheydealmorewiththetransformationofthestatethanglobaltransformationitself(Taylor,2000).Incontrast,mystarting
pointisthequestionofthegeographicalscaleatwhichhumansocialactivitiestakeplace.

Alternativespaces

Thereisonethingallpositionsinthedebateareagreedupon:therehavebeenchangesinthepatternofgeographicalscalesatwhichhumansocial
activitiesareorganized.Tobesurethedegreeofchangeisindisputebuteventhescepticschallengethesimpleonescalepatternofhumanorganization
ensconcedinthemosaicmetageography.Recognizingnewinternationalizationandthefutureimportanceofregionalblocsisalongwayfromleavingthe
'internationalsphere'totheasocialstudyofinternationalrelations.Thisfocusonsupranationalinstitutions,whichissharedbythetransformationalists,can
beinterpretedintwodifferentways.Eitherthereisanewmultiscalarorganizationofhumansocialactivitieswherethestateremainsanimportant,perhaps
stillthemostimportant,scale,orthenewregionalinstitutions,withperhapstheEuropeanUnionleadingtheway,areproducinganewlargerregionalscaleof
humansocialorganization.Thelatterwouldcreateanewmosaicgeographywithareducednumberof'pieces',reversingtheproliferationofstateswhich
characterizedthetwentiethcentury.Whicheverpositionistaken,however,thethinkingremainsterritorialistinnaturewithboundariescontinuingtofeature
prominently.Thisisacontinuationoftheboundaryobsessionfoundattheheartofthemosaicmetageography.Hencedepictingglobalizationas
supranationalsuggestsarelativelymoderatetransitioninacontemporarymetageographicalmoment.

Insteadofsupranationalinstitutions,Ithinkitmoreefficacioustofocusonthetransnationalprocesseswithinglobalization.Boundariesareabouttruncating
flows,andthisispreciselywherestatesarebeingchallengedasnewtechnologieshavemadepolicingbordersmoredifficultthaneverbefore.Theworldwide
webis,inoldterminology,a'smuggler'scharter'.Thisisnottoarguethehyperglobalistpositionofa'borderlessworld',butisdoesmeanthattransnational
processescanunderminethemosaicmetageographymuchmorecompletelythansupranationalinstitutions.

ThebestconceptualizationofthischangecomesfromCastell's(1996)inhisidentificationofacontemporary'networksociety'.Hecontraststhe'spaceof
flows'whichconstitutesthelatterwiththe'spaceofplaces'whichproceededit.AccordingtoCastells,beforethe1970ssocietywasorganizedterritorially,as
reflectedinthemosaicmetageography,withagriculture,industryandservicesareallybasedinlocalandnationaleconomies.Allthischangeswiththecoming
ofthe'informationalage'wherenewenablingtechnologiescombiningcommunicationsandcomputersprovidethepotentialfornewtransnationalprojections
ofpower.Thiswasfirstrecognizedintheearly1970sasmultinationalcorporationswerefoundtohave'globalreach'andeconomiccloutgreaterthanmany
individualcountries(BarnettandMuller,1974).Ataboutthesametimetheinternationalfinancialmarket'tookoff'sothatbythe1980sitdwarfedallnational
finances.Governmentcontroloffinancessealedbytheinstitutionofcentralbankswasputbackintodoubt.Theendresultisaglobalspaceofflowsinan
economywheresuccessisbasedonaccesstoinformation.Thisinterpretationofglobalizationisselfevidentlyanextremelyradicalchallengetothematerial
basisofthemosaicmetageography.

WhileusingCastells'argumenttocategorizecontemporaryglobalizationwedonothavetosharehisgeohistory.AsArrighi(1994,84)hasclearlyshown,
internationalfinancialflowstranscendingstateshavebeenacyclicalphenomenoninthecapitalistworldeconomy.Hencecriticalsystemic'spacesofflows'
precedethe1970s.Interestingly,ArrighisuggeststhatCastellsmissesearlierspacesofflowsbecauseheisavictimofembeddedstatisminhistreatmentof
pre1970spaces.9 ForArrighispacesofplacesandspacesofflowshavedevelopedsimultaneouslyinthemodernworldsystemalthoughtheywillvaryin
relativeimportanceatdifferenttimes.Thisis,ofcourse,whatmysequenceofmetageographiesdescribedpreviouslysuggests.Theinitialtopological
metageographyclearlyrepresentsaspaceofflows,thecentripetalmetageographydescribesamixtureofthetwotypesofspace,andthemosaic
metageographyisaspaceofplaces.ReturningtoCastells,itwouldseemthatglobalizationhasreversedthismetageographicaltrendtoamoreterritorial
geographicalimaginationinamovebacktoaspaceofflows.

Worldcitiesinanetworkmetageography?

ForCastells(1996,415)worldcitiesconstitutethe'mostdirectillustration'ofthenodesandhubsinhisglobalspaceofflows.Ofcourse,ithasalwaysbeen
thenatureofcitiestobethenodesinnetworksofflows.Hence,wehavetoaskagainwhetherCastells'identificationofauniquepresent,worldcities
operatingina'globalnetwork'ofcities(p.380),isindeedsingular.Certainlytherehavebeenlargescalenetworksofportswhichlongpredatethemodern
worldsystem.Theemergenceofthelatterproduceditsownportnetworkasdepictedinthetopologicalmetageography.'AtlanticEurope'inFigure1,for
instance,isconstitutedofthegreatportcitiesofAmsterdam,London,Bordeaux,Lisbon,Seville.Bristol,Rotterdam,LeHavreandsoon.Furthermore,there
havebeengreatinternationalfinancialcentresinthemodernworldsystemArrighi(1994)listsGenoa,Antwerp,AmsterdamLondonandNewYorkin
chronologicalorder.ForBraudel(1982)thesewere'worldcities'inthesenseofbeingtheleadingcityoftheirrespectiveeraswithsystemwideinfluencies.
Today,followingtheworkofSassen(1991),itisusualtoidentifythree'globalcities'London,NewYorkandTokyoasleadingworldcities:Castellsplaces
thematthetopofhishierarchy(p.380)forexample.Thisputative'sharedleadership'isnotnecessarilyunusualsincesingularworldcityleadershiphistorically
declinesinlinewithhegemoniccycles.Buttheglobalspreadofleadingcities,straddlingtheworld'stimezonesinafinancialmarketthatnevercloses,does
representanewscaleoffinancialactivity.Butdoesthisglobalizationrepresentagenuinelynewurbansystem?

Iamgoingtoanswerthisquestionpositivelybecausetheeconomicrestructuringassociatedwithglobalizationhasenhancedtheroleofcitiestoan
extraordinarydegree.Theinformationalagehasfavouredthegrowthofeconomicsectorswhereknowledge(i.e.howyouuseinformation)isakey
componentofproduction.Inadvancedservicesectors,ofcourse,knowledgeistheproduct.Hencethetraditionroleofcitiesas'servicecentres'hasmeant
thatthemajorcitieswhoprovidecorporateserviceshaveprosperedoutstandinglywithglobalization.Theseadvancedproducerservices(suchas
accountancy,advertising,banking/finance,insurance,managementconsultancy,law,etc.)have'goneglobal'.Initially,thislocationalexpansionwas
necessarytoservetheirmultinationalcorporationcustomersbutsubsequentlyservicefirmshavedevelopedtheirownglobalstrategies.Makingfulluseofthe
enablingcommunicationtechnologies,advancedproducerservicefirmsthemselvescreatedacuttingedgeglobalindustry.Hence,servicefirms,traditionally
associatedwithaclientbaseinasinglecity,havebecomeglobalcorporations.Buttostayatthecuttingedgetheyhavetobelocatedwherelargequantities
ofthemostuptodateinformationintersectswithclustersofadvanced'professional/creative'expertisetomakenewcustomizedknowledgeproducts(Sassen,
1991).Thismeansthattobeasuccessfulplayerinthefield,aglobalservicefirmhastohaveanarrayofofficesinworldcitiesacrosstheglobe.

Collectively,themanyglobalfirmswithmulticitynetworksofofficescollectivelyhaveproducedthecontemporaryworldcitynetwork(Taylor,2001).The
GlobalizationandWorldCities(GaWC)researchteamatLoughboroughUniversityhasbeenexperimentingwithfirst,howtoidentifyworldcitiesandsecond,
howtolocatetheminaworldcitynetwork.Identificationwascarriedoutusingdataon71servicefirmswhichcreatedaninventoryof55worldcitiesatthree
levelsofserviceprovisiontenalphaworldcities(includingSassen'sthree'globalcities'),tenbetaworldcities,and35gammaworldcities(Beaverstock,Smith
andTaylor,1999).ThedistributionofthesecitiesshowsthreedistinctclusterscentredonnorthernAmerica,westernEuropeandPacificAsia:globalizationis
certainlynotanevengeographicalprocess.Ratherthansimplelocation,hoever,emphasisinanetworksocietyshouldbeontheconnectionsbetweencities.
InFigure3a'globalcorporateservicespace'hasbeenconstructedbycomputingtheconnectionsbetweencitiesamong46majorservicefirmswithofficesin
morethan15cities.Invertingsimilaritiesinprofilesoffirmsbetweenpairsofcitiestoproduce'functionaldistances'(i.e.themoresimilartwocitiesare,the
smallerthe'corporateservicedistance'betweenthem),enablesustousemultidimensionalscalingtodefinethenewspaceTayloretal.2000).AndasFigure
3shows,thespaceishighlycentricinnaturewiththemajoralphacitiesatthecentreandlesserworldcitiesrelegatedtoaperiphery.However,thereisalsoa

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distinctiveregionalpatternwiththethreemainglobalizationarenaseasilydiscernable.Thisnewworldmaprepresentsaunique'visualization'ofthemodern
worldsystemasanetworkofcitieslinkedtogetherinamixtureofhierarchyandregionality..

Wecomenowtothequestionposedinthetitleofthissection:can/willtheworldcitynetworkconstituteanewmetageographyinkeepingwithcontemporary
globalization?Theanswerto'can'isobviouslyyes,withthedisintegrationofthemosaicmetageographyasdescribedearlier,theopportunityexistsforthe
makingofanalternativecollectivegeographicalimagination.Butthisisnotasimpleandquickswitch.Inanswerto'will'ourconfidencemustbehighly
circumscribed.Asthingsstandatthemoment,citiesappeartobethemostlikelycandidatestothreatentheprimacyofstatesasthebuildingblocksofa
spatialframeworkoftheworld.Aswellastheeconomictrendsdescribedabove,therearepoliticaldevelopmentsenhancingthestatusofcitiesnotablethe
widespreadpromotionandadoptionof'strongmayor'formsofcitygovernment.Electionstosuchpostsmaybeinstrumentalinthedisintegrationofnational
partysystems.Butthereare,asyet,littleornoevidenceofatransferofprimaryallegianceoridentityfromstatetocity.Figure3ispresentedasmerely
indicativeofthepossibilityofanewnetworkmetageography.

Transdisciplinarysocialscience

Networksandboundariesareuneasybedfellowsandthereforewecanexpectthescopeofgreatcitiestobetruncatedbytheworldofboundariescreatedby
nationstates.Butthemosaicmetageographyhascreatedanadditionalpenalty:citieshavebeenmajorvictimsofembeddedstatism.Inurbanstudies
relationsbetweencitieshavebeenconceptualsedas'nationalcitysystems'or'nationalurbanhierarchies'.Inotherwords,relationsaremodeledasstopping
atthestateborder:forinstanceNewYorkisconceivedasanAmericancityandnotaworldcity.Ofcourse,giventhenatureofstateistics,eventhese
truncatedintercityrelationsusuallyremainattheconceptuallevelonlymeasuresofflows,connectionsorlinkagesareconspicuouslymissing.Studiesof
citiesareusuallycomparativeandfocusondemographicsbecausethatiswhatcensusdataprovides:itiswhatstatesneedtoknowintheiraccounting.

Focusingonthepopulationsizesofcitieshasgeneratedatraditionofresearchon'urbanization'whichispatentanticityinperspective.Citiesareportrayed
asaproblemfortheirgeographicalneighboursratherthanastheeconomicandculturalopportunitieswhichisthereality.Atthegloballevelthishasledtoa
focusonlargemegacitiesandtheproblemstheypose.Ofcourse,'bigcities'areeasilyidentified,allthatisneededisapopulationthresholdandcensus
figuresfromtheappropriatecountries(actuallythedataisbroughttogetherinUNpublications).Incontrastjusttryandfindmeaningfuldataontherelations
betweenLondonandNewYork,thetwoleadingworldcities.Thereareno,Iwouldgoasfarastosaytherecanbeno,stateisticsonsuchimportant
informationtheGaWCworkdescribedaboveislargelyabouttryingtoconstructsuchintercitymeasuresandofficialdataneverenterstheequation.

Thisbriefindictmentofthetreatmentofcitiesthroughembeddedstatismmeansthatwecannotexpectthetrinityofsocialsciencestohavemademuch
contributiontotheideaofcitiesasthecrossroadsofsociety.Withinthesocialsciencescitieshavemainlyconstitutedproblemswithmuchusemadeof
attributemeasuresinthe'censustract'researchtradition.Butthereisapositivesidetourbanstudies.Asanalternativewayoforganizingsocialknowledge,
thistypeofareastudyshowsapotentialforamoresyntheticapproachseeingthecityasawhole(albeitshornofitsexternalrelations).Asimilareffectis
foundwithregionalareastudieswhere,forinstance,anAfricanistcannotbenarrowlypoliticaloreconomicorsocial.However,inpractice,thesefieldsofstudy
neverachievedtheprominenceorstatusofthetrinitydisciplines.Throughoutthelifeofthemosaicmetageography,thedominationofthetrinityonsocial
knowledgewasnotindoubt:thespatialentitywasthenationstateandthemethodswereanalytical.Buthowfaristhetrinitydependentonembedded
statism?Howwilltheyfareasthelatteriseroded?

Thetrinityhasnotbeenabletohandleglobalizationverywell(Taylor,1996b).Butglobalizationhashardlybeenneglectedinsocialresearch.Whathas
happenedisthattherehasbeenafloweringoftransdisciplinarystudieswhichhavecopedquitewellinthenewcircumstances.Thefieldofculturalstudiesis
atypicalexample.Withitsrootsintraditionalanthropology,ithasdevelopedontheinterfacebetweenthehumanitiesandsocialsciencetobecomeoneof
themostvibrantsourcesofideasaboutglobalization.NoticethatIhavereferredtoitasa'field'ratherthanadiscipline.Instudyingglobalization,narrow
specialization,especiallywiththeoryembeddedinstatism,isadisadvantageforunderstandingthenewprocesses.Anotherfieldisbusinessstudies.While
thedisciplineofeconomicscontinuestotellusaboutnationaleconomies(or'theeconomy'astheywouldreferit),businessschoolsacrossallcontinentshave
emergedfromtheir'management'originstoprovideeclecticresearchagendasontheworldeconomyandglobalization.

TheemergenceofIPE(internationalpoliticaleconomy)outofIR(internationalrelations)isparticularlyinstructiveinthiscontext.LedbyStrange(1988)and
hercampaignagainstnarrowdisciplinaryapproaches,10 itbecamecleartoanewschoolofresearchersthatinternationalpoliticsandinternationalbusiness
couldnotsensiblybestudiedinisolationofeachother.ObviouslyboostedbytheendoftheColdWarandthemoretransparentnatureofinternational
economiccompetitioninthe1990s,neverthelesspioneersofthisschoolpredatethischangewiththeirinitial'statesandmarkets'approach.Althoughkeeping
theterm'international'initstitle,IPEhasbecomeaveryheterodoxbodyofknowledge.AswellastheoriginalschoollargelyderivedfromIR,therehasbeen
arevivalofpreembeddedstatismknowledgessuchasinstitutionaleconomics(e.g.onthesocialconstitutionofmarkets)andthecreationofnewknowledges
suchasworldsystemsanalysis(e.g.onglobalcommoditychainanalysisandworldcities)whichcanallfindaplaceunderthisintellectualumbrella.Thereisa
newcommonsense:heterodoxyandeclectismarenecessaryinnewcircumstanceswherenodisciplinescanclaimamonopolyofsocialknowledge.
Transdisciplinaryknowledgeisrequiredtostudytransnationalprocesses.

REFERENCES

Agnew,J.(1993)'Theterritorialtrap',ReviewofInternationalPoliticalEconomy1,5380

Arrighi,G.(1994)TheLongTwentiethCenturyLondon:Verso

Bartlett,C.J.(1984)TheGlobalConflict,18001970London:Longman

Beaverstock,J.V.,Smith,R.G.andTaylor,P.J.(1999)'Arosterofworldcities',Cities,16,44558

Berman,M.(1988)AllthatisSolidMeltsintoAirNewYork:Penguin

Castells,M.(1996)TheRiseoftheNetworkSociety.Oxford:Blackwell

Cook,T.(1984)'Areconstructionoftheworld:GeorgeR.Parkin'sBritishEmpiremapof1893",Cartographia21(4),5365

Frank,A.G.(1998)ReOrientBerkeley:UniversityofCaliforniaPress

Held,D.,McGrew,A.,Goldblatt,D.andPerraton,J.(1999)GlobalTransformationCambridge:Polity

Helleiner,E.(1999)'Historicizingterritorialcurrencies',PoliticalGeography18,30940

Hinsley,F.H.(1982)'Theriseandfallofthemodernimternationalsystem',ReviewofInternationalStudies8,18

Israel,J.I.(1989)DutchPrimacyinWorldTrade,15851740Oxford:Clarendon

Lewis,M.W.andWigen,K.E.(1997)TheMythofContinents.Berkeley:UniversityofCaliforniaPress

Oliver,R.andFage,J.D.(1988)AShortHistoryofAfricaLondon:Penguin

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Ruggie,J.(1993)'Territorialityandbeyond',InternationalOrganization47,13974

Sassen,S.(1991)TheGlobalCity.Princeton:PrincetonUniversityPress

Slater,D.andTaylor,P.J.(eds.)(1999)TheAmericanCenturyLondon:Routledge

Smith,A.D.(1982)'Ethnicidentityandworldorder',Millennium12,14961

Smith,W.D.(1984)'ThefunctionofcommercialcentresinthemodernizationofEuropeancapitalism',JournalofEconomicHistory44,9851005

Strange,S.(1988)StatesandMarketsLondon:Pinter

Strange,S.(1996)TheRetreatoftheStateCambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress

Taylor,P.J.(1996a)TheWaytheModernWorldWorksNewYork:Wiley

Taylor,P.J.(1996b)'Embeddedstatismandthesocialsciences:openinguptonewspaces',EnvironmentandPlanningA,28,191728

Taylor,P.J.(1997a)'Thecrisisofboundaries:towardsanewheterodoxyinthesocialsciences',JournalofAreaStudies,11,1131

Taylor,P.J.(1997b)'Hierarchicaltendenciesamongstworldcities:aglobalresearchproposal',Cities,14,32332

Taylor,P.J.(1999a)Modernities:aGeohistoricalInterpretationCambridge:Polity

Taylor,P.J.(2000)'Embeddedstatismandthesocialsciences2:geographies(andmetageographies)inglobalization',EnvironmentandPlanningA,32,

Taylor,P.J.(2001)'Specificationoftheworldcitynetwork',GeographicalAnalysis,(inpress)

Taylor,P.J.,Hoyler,M.,Walker,D.R.F.andSzegner,M.J.(2000)'Anewworldmapforthenewmillennium',GaWCResearchBulletin30

Wallerstein,I.(1979)TheCapitalistWorldEconomyCambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress

Zerubavel,E.(1992)TerraCognita:theMentalDiscoveryofAmericaNewBrunswick:RutgersUniversityPress

NOTES

1.Myfavouriteexampleoftheoverpoweringinfluenceofametageographycomesinnaturebookswhereanimalsandplantsare'nationalised'asin'British
Trees'orBritishInsects'.ThisrepresentsthepowerofwhatIcallbelowamosaicmetageographybaseduponnationstates.Thereareevenbookson'British
Birds'eventhoughmanyaremigratoryandspendmuchoftheyeareitherfarnorthorfarsouthofBritain.

2.Sincethisisthemetageographywithwhichallreaderswillhavegrownup,andcontinuetocarryaroundintheirheads,unlikethepreviouscasesIhaveno
needtouseafiguretoshowthisgeographicalimagination.

3.Forelaborationsonthis,seeSlaterandTaylor(1999).

4.Thisis,ofcourse,themessageofRostow's(1960)mostfamousdevelopmentladderina'noncommunistmanifesto.

5.ThissectiondrawsheavilyontheargumentinHelleiner(1999).

6.Ofcourse,thissituationhasbeenrecentlyhighlightedbythecreationoftheeuroreplacingnationalcurrenciesinmostoftheEU.Intheresistancetothis
move,criticshavebetrayedaremarkablestatismintheirargumentthattheirterritory(e.g.theUK)needsflexibilityinitsfiscalmanagementwhileomittingto
noticeitsownfiscalpenaltiesimposedonsubregions(e.g.thenorthofEnglandwhereextraunemploymentisdeemednecessarytodampeninflationinthe
southofEngland).

7.ThissectiondrawsfromandbuildsuponTaylor(1996b)and(2000).

8.ThissectiondrawsfromandbuildsuponTaylor(1997b).

9.Hedoesnotusethephraseembeddedstatismbutidentifiesitclearlyas'thebiasofourconceptualequipmentinfavourofspaceofplacesthatdefines
theprocessofstateformation'.

10.Sheattemptstosubvert'theexclusivityofthe"disciplines"andsubdisciplinesofsocialscience..(because).ourtimesnolongerallowusthecomfortof
separatistspecialisationinthesocialsciences,and.theattempthastobemadeatsythesisandblending..'(Strange,1996,xvxvi).

Figure1:Thetopologicalmetageography

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Figure2:Thecentripetalmetageography

Figure3:Globalcorporateservicespace

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Editedandpostedonthewebon20 thSeptember2000

Note:ThisResearchBulletinhasbeenpublishedinMATtreault,RADenemark,KPThomasandKBurch(eds)(2003)RethinkingGlobalPoliticalEconomy:
EmergingIssues,UnfoldingOdysseysLondon:Routledge,4664

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