Abstract
This article examines the question of global order in the contemporary historical conjuncture. I argue that Hardt and Negri's Empire provides a response to such a question. This response is necessary given the manner in which globalisation theory's explanation of global order has been contested by the George W Bush regime. An exegesis of the manner in which Empire delineates global order in the contemporary era provides, moreover, a fruitful encounter between elements of post-structuralist International Relations theory and the subject matter of International Political Economy. The article sketches out the principal characteristics of empire followed by an exegesis of the empirical manifestation of imperial characteristics in the contemporary global order. I argue that the present global order is characterised by the drawing of boundaries or the constitution of thresholds that define what is to be regarded as included and excluded from the imperial realm. Empire vigorously polices these thresholds in order to defer encounters with others that might question its self-asserted timeless pacific civility. Finally, I conclude by noting that the centrality of such boundary constitution to imperial forms suggests that a logic of security underlies contemporary global order. Thus investigations into the political economy of Empire will always already comprise an investigation of imperial logics of security.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 855-871 |
Number of pages | 17 |
Journal | Third World Quarterly |
Volume | 26 |
Issue number | 6 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Dec 2005 |