Nation-Building and Development as Ideology and Practice

Abstract

Mass dictatorships are transnational formations of modernity that are inextricably linked to broader historical interactions on the global scale. All nations converge on the common project to create modern nation-states, yet the differing starting points gave urgency to the notion of “catching up with the rest.” The connection between nation-building and development manifested first in nineteenth-century Europe, where a perceived sense of crisis emerged from a fatal fear of falling economically behind. Great Britain established dominance in world trade through its linkages with the Atlantic nexus of slaves, sugar plantations and industrialization. Combined with the Asian trade in commodities such as tea and opium, a formidable economic powerhouse emerged that became the envy of the world. Contrary to theories that emphasize “Protestant ethics,” industrialization did not emerge because of an inherent industriousness of the British workforce. Great Britain was the first to integrate successfully with the global market by rapidly connecting its economy to the key “peripheral regions” beyond Europe. Other European powers soon followed this expansionist path to construct empires that spanned the globe.