Introduction

Abstract

The questions addressed in this book refer to the meanings of globalization that circulate in ideological debates, to how they are generated and mobilized in political argument and to the extent to which their mobilization results in shifts and tensions within conventional ideologies. However, while the focus is on globalization as a political concept and its implications in the realm of ideology, the subject needs to be considered first, at least briefly, against the backdrop of broader debates surrounding the reality of globalization as a process and its impact (or lack of it) on social life and inquiry. Along with such contextualization, this introduction also provides a preliminary explanation of some key assumptions underlying this study and signals more specific arguments to be developed in subsequent chapters.