The Modern World-System II: Mercantilism and the Consolidation of the European World-Economy, 1600–1750 by Immanuel Wallerstein

The Modern World-System II: Mercantilism and the Consolidation of the European World-Economy, 1600–1750 Reviews

• 
  Eren Buğlalılar

  The book has some killer passages that make you want to scream in boredom. If you are looking for a general theory of world-systems try Chase-Dunn's "Global Formations". This is an economic historian nitpicking to defeat his harsh critics.
  
  Wallerstein's "World Systems Series" are the works around which debates on the origins of capitalism revolved in 1970s and 80s. As an answer to the critics of the first volume (1974) who accused him of ignoring the relations of production within the countries, here in this second voume (1980) Wallerstein focuses more on the intra-European economies. The thesis of the second volume is that the Europe-centered world economy slowed down between 1600-1750 and this had a formative impact on the economies and societies of both the core and peripheral countries.
  
  Wallerstein's most debated claim is that you cannot classify a regional economy as feodal or pre-capitalist if this region is already absorbed within the world capitalist market around which the local production is organized. He says that the existence of seemingly feodal or slavery relations and the absence of wage labour in the periphery does not make it a feodal or a slave society. When they are in a colony, looking for the raw materials, the capitalists of the core won't wait for the textbook capitalist relations to thrive there so that they can properly exploit the labour force. The resulting economic regime would be something different than the capitalism in the core countries, but still it would be a capitalist economy of some sorts.
  
  Wallerstein's convincing thesis is compromised by his lack of focus on the class struggles and their impact, both in the core and the periphery. Still, a very good book by a very open-minded and prolific scholar. If only his writing style was more reader-friendly.
• 
  Alex Lee

  In this amazingly detailed and rich work, Wallerstein illustrates how various economic principles -- pursuit of a robust economy -- pursuit of abundance -- can be the seminal with which to read various political, military and policy actions of various European nations between the periods of 1600 to 1750... Of course, he also accounts for history and religion before and after this period to bookend his projections... but the implications are clear.
  
  In a capitalist framework, nations themselves self-organize in as much as the industries and socio-economic sectors self-organize to support one another, to get purchase and gain a place within the emerging economy to 'get their own'. In some cases, such as with Austria and Sweden, rules attempt to get by hook or crook, war or alliance, more resources with which to build a base of power and abundance. Often within the nations themselves, they may seek workers from other places that can build their economy, but more often than not, nations will oppress their own people for the plenitude of the upper classes who languish in plenitude.
  
  Each nation, England, Prussia, Spain, France, the Dutch... they all do this in different ways, with various differences in success. Ultimately, a lucky combination of having access to trade, of being able to compete cheaply in trade (which is often enforced militarily) gives rise to the desired position of Hegemony... which can only last so long before financial control becomes the way to retire ones' prior dominance... which is a basic example of the economic system, the world system Wallerstein has so noted in his career.
  
  One of the direct implications of this reading though, leads to understanding that politics is always a delayed response in the symbolic area of language towards economic movement. That politics and language is how people tactically negotiate to position themselves among others. Seen in this way, the naked ambitions of nations can be brought to light.
  
  While the history of this period was one that overall was seen as stagnation, it did lead towards British dominance and eventually WWI and WWII, both of which can be seen as military responses to economic aggression. The multitude of wars leading up to the 20th century can also seen as attempts by those in charge to limit the ability of semi-periphery nations to become core nations... often with great success. The frustration of those semi-periphery nations however, continues on to the next generation as they try again, sometimes with different allies, in order to claw their way up to the top, so they too can become richer than they already are.
  
  While questions of why people create competition to compete among themselves is an interesting question, Wallerstein is more interested in pointing out how this happens than why -- and he is very interested in showing how each industry, each nation's contingencies and limitations led them to the actions they took, and why certain strategies, like those in France or Spain, did not lead them to become more powerful than they had already become. The lesson here seems to be that nations that can integrate themselves and move as a whole towards concentrated efforts in key areas will always find ways to dominant, whereas alliances that allow your allies to become stronger are always reluctantly allowed so long as the major competitors are not allowed to progress (which is how Germany came into power)... That the British with their smaller country (than France) was of a more manageable size, and geographically positioned for sea dominance won out becomes no surprise.
  
  Some of these trends can also be seen today. In fact, the whole point of historic narrative is to see ourselves in its reflection and to understand trends today by their antecedents of yesteryear... and this book really holds to that advantage. As with any work though, the devil is in the details, and Wallerstein takes great pains to demonstrate how smaller areas of competition can add up to (or be eliminated by) areas in other places... and how the right push under the right condition can give way to larger movements that far outreach what we already can imagine.
  
  As it is, someone's got to be on top, right?, in as much as those that are in charge are doomed to lose their position inevitably.
  
  I strongly look forward to reading the next work, World-System III.
• 
  Matthew

  Two down. Going to get a shirt that says “Ask Me About The Long Sixteenth Century” on the front and “Made In Silesia” on the back.
• 
  Alejo López Ortiz

  Quedaron para el primer día de este nuevo año las ultimas paginas del segundo tomo del Moderno Sistema Mundial. Un viaje por el periodo comprendido entre 1600 y 1750 y que significó, como bien lo titula la obra, “la consolidación de la economía-mundo europea”.
  
  Este tomo es de inmensa importancia, porque el mismo Wallerstein declara que el siglo XVII y la primera mitad del siglo XVIII define la visión y la definición del capitalismo como sistema económico y social. El libro consta de 7 capítulos que reflejan y transitan todo el desarrollo económico del periodo en mención.
  
  El libro parte de la descripción del siglo XVI como un siglo de un prolongado estancamiento de la producción, que provocó una enorme crisis cuya importancia fue trascendental en los sucesos que habrían de venir en todo el siglo y que provocarían el cambio hegemónico en el sistema mundial. Posteriormente, relata las condiciones que propiciaron y mantuvieron a Holanda al mando de la economía-mundo europea y su posterior traspaso a Inglaterra.
  
  Pero este traspaso no sería inmediato ni pacifico. Estuvo precedido de casi un siglo de disputas bélicas y tensiones entre Inglaterra y Francia para definir el nuevo líder hegemónico. Wallerstein narra con precisión las condiciones sociales, económicas y políticas que caracterizaban a ambos estados en la disputa por suceder a Holanda y sus relaciones con el entorno económico de los países del centro y de la periferia y como cada una de estas condiciones sirvieron para que se efectuara el desenlace de esta disputa: el ascenso de Inglaterra y el desinfle de Francia en sus aspiraciones hegemónicas. En medio de todo esto, Holanda tuvo un papel importante, y su alianza con Inglaterra le permitió a los primeros una jubilación decorosa y a los británicos un apoyo trascendental en sus intereses en Europa.
  
  De esta manera pues, el mercantilismo logró ganar esta disputa, pero de lejos de ganarla como sistema comercial de por sí, lo hizo porque es un arma que solo es exitosa cuando es empleada por alguien lo suficientemente fuerte. El mismo autor manifiesta, que el triunfo de Inglaterra, “lejos de ser el triunfo del liberalismo, fue el triunfo de un estado fuerte”.
  
  Por último, les recomiendo a quienes leen esta reseña, leerse toda la serie de este autor, para comprender el contexto histórico-económico de la actual hegemonía económica y la forma en que se han desarrollado las transiciones hegemónicas en el planeta. Información demasiado importante en este momento, en que parece llegar al suelo el estandarte estadounidense en la hegemonía mundial.
  
  Mi frase preferida de esta obra: “Estar en la cumbre es estar seguro de que el futuro no será nuestro por mucho que el presente lo sea. Pero no deja de ser bello”
  
• 
  Boone Ayala

  Central claim: the period from roughly 1600-1750 was one of stagnation (slower growth, but not shrinking) brought about primarily by overproduction of staples and shortages of bullion. Thus in this period the core states, having largely spent the 16th century developing internal capitalist classes with their hands on the state machinery, turned outwards, and began to compete with one another. Initially, the main competitors were the Dutch and the English, but by 1672 the Dutch had surpassed their peak (it is suggested that this always happens to hegemons in the end). From then until 1763 the primary conflict was between England and France. France was burdened with internal divisions and large size which ultimately meant that no singular capitalist class could take control. This weakness of the French state relative to the English state, which, especially after the "English Revolution" and the Restoration in 1660, was dominated by capitalists, resulted in the two nations differential fates in the latter 18th and 19th centuries.
• 
  sube

  The book is a continuation of the series; in this book the concept of hegemony is at its centre, i.e. the successive economic prequisites of productive, commercial and financial advantages - which is shown at the example of the Netherlands, as well with a discussion of the transition between hegemons, where geopolitical & historical constraints are central over productive / technological ones, which have been in Wallerstein's view over-emphasised. It was France's size, which constrainted its ability to grow a strong state which was able to mediate an effective upper-class compromise and was forced to focus on a land-based strategy, as well as the inability to ally with Netherlands, which allowed England to push ahead with its navy-based strategy, profitting from Dutch financing and less costs due to the navy, which also allowed the conquering of new economic markets. It is the story of how "strength led to strength and weakness to weakness." (p. 288)
  
  The beginning and ending are quite interesting, the middle portions can get quite boring.
• 
  Ajay

  An excellent 2nd novel in the Modern World System. The main exponents of theory were outlined in part 1, but this novel plays a key role in bringing us closer to modernity.
  
  I particularly enjoyed the deeper understandings of the Dutch, Swedish, Prussians, and American colonies.
  
  I also am starting to feel a glaring lack of non-euro centric analysis that limits a full understanding of the system. Would love to see this expanded to other world regions.
  
• 
  John Ward

  Quality analysis , dense reading , a lot of information , glad I read big bio of Peter the Great before.
• 
  !Tæmbuŝu

  
  KOBOBOOKS
• 
  Matthew

  mostly absent from these books by Wallerstein is any impact of the working class had on the formation of the world capitalist system
• 
  Turan

  For every historian in Early Modern Times a must!