Global Cities and the Transformation of the International System
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The London School of Economics and Political Science Global Cities and the Transformation of the International System Simon J. Curtis A thesis submitted to the Department of International Relations of the London School of Economics for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, London, November 2008 1 UMI Number: U615285 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Dissertation Publishing UMI U615285 Published by ProQuest LLC 2014. Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 . Acknowledgements In undertaking a doctoral degree the author inevitably accrues a great many debts. Some of my debts predate the thesis itself, and some of them will no doubt continue long afterwards. Such webs of influence and support are hard to fully trace, but it seems certain to me that whatever achievement is represented by the success of this thesis, the credit is certainly not mine to take alone. The coundess words and deeds of support, both moral and financial, the ideas and influence of so many others, the conversations, criticisms and encouragement of friends, colleagues and family; all of these are very much part of the fabric of this work. It would not and could not exist without them. In acknowledging these many debts I would like to make special mention of some of the people and institutions that have been integral to this project. Firstly, I would like to express my gratitude to those who shaped my early interest in history and International Relations. I would like to thank Brian Brivati, not just for his excellent teaching, but also for his encouragement and support in furthering my academic interests. I would also like to especially thank Margot Light. My interest in International Relations was sparked in large part by her lectures at the LSE, it was a pleasure to meet her again in the doctoral research seminars, and she has always been extremely supportive and encouraging. I would also like to thank Phil Nathan for his exceptional generosity and support. I must also acknowledge the role of the London School of Economics, which has provided an exceptionally stimulating environment in which to study international affairs. The opportunity that students at the LSE have to hear the most important thinkers of the day has been of exceptional benefit. I have been lucky enough to have had direct access to some of the teaching of important scholars in fields as diverse as Urban Sociology, Political Geography and International Relations. The thesis would have looked very different if not for the influence of the LSE. I have also been fortunate enough to be generously supported financially by the International Relations Department at the LSE during my doctoral research, through the Michael Leifer Scholarship. I am not at all certain that this thesis would exist without that support, for which I am extremely grateful. I would also like to acknowledge the shaping influence of my doctoral supervisor Barry Buzan, whose work has been inspirational to me. As a supervisor, Barry gave me the necessary trust to follow this topic where it led. I appreciate that for him there must have been times when he may have worried if it would lead anywhere at all, and this is why I am grateful for his patience, trust and guidance in helping me to complete the project. I hope that he can be proud of the results - the form that the thesis has taken has been shaped by his input in so many ways, although there are also many ways in which I have undoubtedly moved in directions that he would not have. Any wrong- turns I may have taken I claim full responsibility for, but I appreciate the chance of being allowed to make them. I would also like to thank my examiners, Richard Little and Chris Brown, for their time, effort and feedback. Of the many great friends that I have made during the writing of this thesis, and whose thoughts and ideas I have benefited from, I would like to especially acknowledge Antoine Bousquet, Simona Manea and Marjo Koivisto. These three have been fellow travellers in many ways: ideas kicked around and clarified in discussions with them have found form in the thesis in a number of places. I feel very lucky to have had such good and like-minded friends. When it comes down to the greatest debt of all, I can only humbly thank my family, who have given me more opportunity, love and support than anyone could have a right to ask for. When I read through the words I have written, and think about the interests that I have pursued, I see their different influences coming through clearly, and this does not surprise me, because they are a large part of me. Last, but never least, I thank Elisabeth, who has been unwavering in her encouragement, and helped me in so many ways, from the beginning to the end, for which I will be forever grateful. 3 Abstract In recent decades a discourse has emerged around the concept of the ‘global city’. This discourse has sought to understand the nature of a set of physical changes to the form of many cities around the world, linking these changes to processes of globalisation. Despite its inspiration for important work in other fields, International Relations has been slow to recognise the implications of the rise of the global city. This thesis argues that the emergence of the global city phenomenon is an important indication of broader transformative tendencies in the contemporary international system. It also argues that International Relations as a discipline offers a unique set of theoretical resources that can help analysts draw out the wider impact of the global city on international politics. In particular, the core concept of the ‘international system’, when formulated in a historically sensitive fashion, offers insight into the rise and fall of many different institutional forms and structures across time. The modern state system, when viewed from the perspective of la longue duree, may be viewed as a unique historical moment. For much of history, different polities have existed together: empires, city-states, leagues of cities, nomadic peoples. This thesis examines the proposition that the rise of the global city reveals another historic shift in the nature of the international system, and indicates the theoretical resources that may allow us to comprehend such a change. The important relationship between cities and states, it is argued, is now undergoing a historic shift, just as it has at many other points in the past. Understanding the nature of this change illuminates a host of important issues, including transformation in the nature of the state itself, and the renegotiation of the relationship between polities, territorial scale and the global economy in the contemporary world. 4 Global Cities and the Transformation of the International System Contents Acknowledgements 2 Abstract 4 Introduction 7 The Transformation of Urban Form: Global City Regions and Networks 10 Conceptualising Cities within International Systems 14 Three Theories of International Transformation 19 The Social Shaping of Technology 22 Plan of the Thesis 27 1 International Systems: Material and Social Approaches 32 An International Systems Approach 33 Systems Thinking 36 A Systemic Approach to International Relations 36 Systems Ontologies 40 Conceptualising International Systems 49 2 Agents, Structures and International Systems 60 The Agent-Structure Problem as Ontological Debate 61 The Agent-Structure Debate in Social Theory and IR Theory 68 Structures and Agents in Social Theory 68 Structures and Agents in International Relations 71 Alternative Perspectives on Agents and Structures 77 Material Agency 7 8 The Social Production ofSpace 82 3 The Transformation of International Systems 88 Theories of Historical Transformation 89 Theories of the Transformation of International Systems 93 Institutional Competition 94 Units, Structures and Patterns of Organisation 96 The Spatial and Temporal Structures of International Systems 103 4 The Urban Dimension of International Transformation 118 The Nature of Cities 119 Cities as Form and Process 120 Urban Genesis and Economic Development 123 The Significance of City Space 126 Urban Transformations 131 Proto-Cities 131 Agrarian Cities 133 Industrial Cities 136 Correlating Periodicity for Cities and International Systems 139 5 5 Beyond Modernity? 148 Modernity 149 Postmodemity 154 Globalisation 162 The Political Projects of Modernity 164 Beyond the National Economy ? 172 6 Global Cities and Transnational Urbanism 180 What is the Global City? 183 A New Urban Morphology 183 Transhistorical or Late-Modern Concept? 187 The World City Hypothesis 189 Globalisation and the Global City 193 Network and Relational Approaches to Global Cities 197 Beyond the Global Cities Discourse 202 ‘Splintering’ Urban Space and the Retreat of National Integration 205 General Conclusion The Rise of the Global City and the Transformation of the International System 211 Ontologies of the International System 212 Global Cities and the Three Theories of International Transformation 216 The Changing Relationship between Cities and States 220 Bibliography 229 Figures Cover of Time Magazine Europe, January 17, 2008 13 Periodising World History 140 Daniel Bell’s Modes of Production 160 John Friedmann’s World City Hierarchy 192 6 Introduction This thesis is concerned with what we understand by the concept of the international system.