The issue of globalization has been an ongoing process that raised many questions in the world. It is indeed a complex subject that is examined in many different perspectives.

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        The issue of globalization has been an ongoing process that raised many questions in the world.  It is indeed a complex subject that is examined in many different perspectives.  Globalization, the integration of international economy, is no doubt a liberalistic idea.  Not only is the emergence of this idea debatable, its consequences and its effects are tremendously important.  To fully understand globalization, one must analyze the aftermath of this movement.  During the 1960s, several theorists began to analyze the consequences of globalization.  It was evident at that time that the rise of international inequality increasingly divided the world into two parts: the development and underdevelopment.  Therefore, I will examine the different explanations of how development and underdevelopment countries occurred and how the later developing countries can successfully develop.  To do so, I will use three different theorists, namely Rostow, Wallerstein, and Gerschenkron.

        With a liberal perspective on development, Rostow sees the necessary conditions of economic development as set stages.  He identifies it as the preconditions for take-off and the take-off.  This theory puts all countries on a unilateral path and assumes that all societies go through 5 stages of economic development.  Each stage is a condition that all countries experience and as a country progress to the next stage, it is a step closer to development. The first stage is a traditional society. A traditional society has a large proportion of the population devoted to agriculture.  At this point, there are no economic growth or capital accumulation. The second stage is called the preconditions for the take-off. At this time, the country has more economic growth, limited social change, but no capital accumulation. Stage three is described as the take-off stage. This is when agriculture is commercialized and new industries appear.  Unused natural resources are exploited, savings and investment rise and steady growth is achieved. This then leads to the stage of the drive to maturity. After a long period of growth (say 40 years), 10 to 20% of national income is invested and output continually outstrips population growth.  Goods that were previously imported are now produced at home.  There is a shift away from heavy engineering towards more complex processes.  The economy can choose to produce anything it wants even if the natural resources required are not actually present. There is also more investment opportunities and technological innovation. The last stage is the age of high mass consumption society. A large number of the population has moved beyond meeting their basic needs.  Leading sectors of the economy are producing durable goods and foreign direct investment begins.

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In his theory, Rostow’s focus is on the nation-state. He emphasizes the importance of capital accumulation and believes it is the engine of all change. When capital accumulation is missing, it must be replaced by foreign aid. From a modernized perspective, Rostow states that economic growth is automatic without political restrictions. He sees states converging with the existence of capital accumulation. However, Rostow overlooks the conditions of different countries.  He doesn’t realize that countries cannot develop the same way because due to various resources and structure. His model is constructed purely upon Western European standards and neglects the fact that ...

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