Globalectics, a term coined by author Ngugi wa Thiong’o, is a portmanteau of global (or globalism) and dialectics. Dialectics refers to the art of discussion between two or more people with differing opinions. People who are engaged in dialectical discussion wish to bring truth to light through reasoned and rational arguments. Dialectics implies the position that discussion cannot lead to the discovery of truth without the inclusion of multiple points of view. Global refers to the space where all things take place. The globe of the planet Earth encompasses everything that exists, and everything that exists is connected to everything else through its relation to the globe. Thus, global implies a holistic relationship between individuals and the world. Globalectics combines these two concepts to describe a “mutually affecting dialogue, or multilogue” (wa Thiong’o, 2014, p. 7). This mutually affecting dialogue broadens the scope of the dialectic to embrace a global outlook that acknowledges the equality of all points of view.
Globalectics offers a new approach to international governance, and can be seen as an alternative to the center-periphery model. The center-periphery model holds that the prosperous, capitalist countries of the world form the core of the global economy and drive trends in international trade. The economies of core countries wield influence over the underdeveloped, non-capitalist countries at the periphery. The core countries profit from their subjugation of peripheral countries, often achieved through the use of military, political, or economic power. Wa Thiong’o writes that as technological advancements throughout the world continue to increase standards of living and improve communication, the global character of production and exchange will continue to evolve, and the center-periphery model will begin to lose relevance. In particular, information technology is thought to be an equalizing force that will change the way people in rich countries relate to people in poor countries.
Once the center-periphery structural organization of the world economy has been abandoned in favor of an egalitarian model, we will have reached a postcolonial period of history. On the whole, the countries that are rich today became rich because they were successful in conquering, colonizing, and exploiting other countries and their people. Likewise, on the whole, the countries that are poor today have endured long histories of conquest, colonization, and exploitation of people and resources that only officially ended decades ago. Thus, the current period can be thought to be colonial, since rich countries continue to benefit from the exploitation of people and resources in poor countries, carrying on the tradition of their colonial forefathers. The colonial period is characterized by the relationship dynamic of a ruler and his subjects, but the post-colonial period will be characterized by the dynamic of the buyer-seller relationship. In the buyer-seller global structure, no country has the power to subject another, and a country’s participation in the international economy is achieved with its consent.
In the postcolonial world, information will become one of the most important globally-traded products. Post-colonialism, and globalectics, will lower the barriers that separate cultures, societies, and races. The intermingling of previously-isolated cultures will give rise to new knowledge and increase the global body of intellectual property, including music, literature, theater, language, and art. Traditional organizations of art forms will change as new influences are introduced, and the reorientation of knowledge will be a product of this change.
References
wa Thiong'o, N. (2014). Globalectics: Theory and the politics of knowing. Columbia University Press.
