Timothy Brook discusses in his book the aspects of world trade during the 17th century and how through the process of globalization, how regions became as interconnected as we know of today. Most people tend to have this conceptualized idea of what globalization is as well as its process. Throughout my educational career, globalization has always been portrayed as big businesses working together providing different goods and services worldwide. In other words, globalization simply involves big, fortune 500-esque companies and has no involvement from anyone else. In the text, however, Brook gives a different interpretation and does so by examining six different paintings by Dutch artist Johannes Vermeer. Instead of focusing primarily on the obvious aspects of each painting, Brook draws the readers’ attention to a variety of intricate details and provides insight for all of them. This helps support his belief that globalization can be traced back to the events of the 17th century and had contributions from several individuals.
According to Merriam-Webster dictionary, globalization can be defined as the development of an increasingly integrated global economy marked especially by free trade, free flow of capital, and the tapping of cheaper foreign labor markets. In Vermeer’s painting, Officer and Laughing Girl (1658), the untrained eye would simply see an apparent couple engaging in conversation. Brook, however, focuses on the grandiose hat worn by Vermeer in the painting. Being that the hat was made out of felt, it serves as a focal point for the type of globalization that was taking place during this time: the transcontinental fur trade. During this time in France, fur was in high demand but the availability of fur bearing animal...
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...g. The tying together each small item to the events of world history symbolizes how the overarching theme of globalization involves many different aspects. Samuel Champlain’s excursion which could’ve been seen as complete accident actually helped establish a very profitable fur trade between North America. Chinese porcelain and its high demand introduced the world to the wonders of China as well as the rest of the world to China. Tobacco became a popular commodity of trade and was exported globally. Along with discoveries of routes, goods, and beliefs, and other things, the movement of people was, and still is, the most vital part of globalization. Without it, history wouldn’t be the same.
Works Cited
http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/journal_of_world_history/summary/v021/21.4.sachsenmaier.html
http://jonathanarriola.blogspot.com/2012/08/book-review-vermeers-hat.html
Vermeer’s Hat offers a unique look at the rise of global trade through Brook’s eyes. Brook uses each of the paintings to describe to the audience a different picture of how the world began progressing. Most think of Vermeer as an isolated artist, with no real connection to the world outside of the walls of his mother-in-law’s house. However, as Brook shows us throughout the story, this could not be further from the truth. Brook relies on the paintings to interpret the rise of global trade to show the audience how architecture has contributed to the rise of global trade, how specific objects in the paintings related to trade, and how geography influenced trade.
Lisa Lowe’s introduction on the word “globalization” was interesting as it reminded me of the readings and lectures regarding colonization of the United States. Globalization is described conditions that increased economic, social, and political interdependence among people. The article allows for comparisons to be made with eighteenth century America. For example, the arrival of English colonists led to a change in the North American landscape. This could also be described as an invasion of native land as colonists felt the land belonged to them. Similarly, Globalization also mentions American invasion in the context of the conflicts against Afghanistan and Iraq. In addition, both seventeenth and twentieth century America appear to some effect
The term globalization varies from person to person. A consumer typically associates globalization with a store producing more goods, stocking inventory, and updating their styles, however; an anthropological definition of globalization is, “the worldwide intensification of interactions and increased movement of money, people, goods, and ideas within and across national borders,” (Guest, 19). Globalization of the clothing industry is about the “search of cheap, reliable labor to meet the industry’s tight margins,” (Timmerman 7). Timmerman suggests that globalization change our lives and can be for the good or for the bad (8). Globalization is often viewed as a mutual and beneficial process for those involved, because it is perceived as helping those out who are in poverty get a job and make money for their families.
The development and prosperity of 17th century expansion created a system that accumulated a vast amount of wealth at the expense of others. During the 17th century many nations started to participate in long distance trades, which introduced a great deal of new possibilities, exciting forms of transcultural exchange, and unprecedented circulation of goods and ideas. In Vermeer’s Hat, by Timothy Brook he explores the origins of world trade in the 17th century through the painting of Johannes Vermeer. By analyzing Vermeer’s painting, Brook illustrates the world of 17th century global trade and examines the phenomena of globalization. For instance, Brook states that, “The seventeenth century was not so much an era of first contacts as an age
The boxwood tobacco pipe and the 17th century English sugar box are both important aspects of globalization. The tobacco pipe highlighted the reach of the tobacco smoking trend, and the connection between the Spanish and the Ottoman Empire. The battle depicted on the pipe is a physical representation of interconnection between the Ottomans and the Europeans. From Equiano, we see that conflict has a globalizing aspect as people encounter and trade with other cultures in the midst of battle. The sugar box became an appealing item throughout Europe not only because it served to house sugar, but because of its intricate, silver-based design. This catalyzed globalization in the Atlantic World, as wealthy Europeans commissioned the shipment of these items back to Europe. In turn, this connected the Americas with the Europeans, and illuminated the need for high-class products. Both of the objects found in the Museum of Fine Arts have globalizing aspects as they spurred on trade, highlighted overarching trends and demonstrated global
The Age of Exploration, Imperialism, and Industrial Growth all played a big part in not just European history, but global as well, but How do they all connect? They each connect in many ways, without any of these parts the others would fail to happen. These events are like steps, if you don’t have step one, How can you continue? You can’t, that’s why these pieces all connect in some way.
Nowadays one of the most commonly used terms is globalization. But what does globalization mean? Does it mean dissappearing borders, a common trade unit, no tax in trade abroad, political awareness across the world, or, in extremes, even interfering with other countries' domestic affairs?
Globalization has several definitions, as Andrew McGrew underlines it. He uses four different ones in order to get a more complete definition. In this way globalization is defined as ‘the intensification of worldwide social relations which link distant localities in such a way that local happenings are shared by events occurring many miles away and vice versa’, ‘the integration of the world-economy’, the ‘de-territorialisation – or growth of supraterritorial relations between people’ and finally as ‘time-space compression’ (Giddens, 1990, p. 21, Gilpin, 2001, p. 364, Scholte, 2000, p. 46, Harvey, 1989, cited in Mc...
Economic development of the early modern era was heavily influenced by the demand for international trade. However, the start of globalization also led to many socio and economic changes throughout the world. Individuals from all over the world were being brought together, and introduced to “international experiences” through globalization (Stearns, 462). Acemoglu, Johnson and Robinson acknowledge that, “The indirect effects of Atlantic trade through institutional change, as well as its direct effect, account for much of Western European growth from 1500 to 1850”(qtd. in De Vries 712).
An outstanding mechanism frequently used to interpret ‘Globalization’ is the ‘World Economy’. Back to the colonial age, the coinstantaneous behaviors of worldwide capitals and energy resources flowed from colonies to western countries has been regarded as the rudiment of the economic geography (Jürgen and Niles, 2005). Nowadays, the global economy was dominated by transnational corporations and banking institutions mostly located in developed countries. However, it is apparently that countries with higher level of comprehensive national strength are eager for a bigger market to dump surplus domestic produce and allocate energy resources in a global scale, thus leads to a world economic integration. This module was supported by several historical globalists (Paul Hirst, Grahame Thompson and Deepak Nayyer) ‘their position is that globalization is nothing new but more fashionable and exaggerate, a tremendous amount of internationalization of money and trade in earlier periods is hardly less than today.’ (Frans J Schuurman 2001:64).
When referring to global commerce, the word globalization is often used. The word globalization is used to "describe the changes in societies and the world economy that are the result of dramatically increased trade and cultural exchange" (Wikipedia, 2005). In economic contexts, it refers almost exclusively to the effects of trade and particularly to "free trade". Since the travels of Marco Polo seven centuries ago, global economic integration, through trade, factor movements, and communication of economically useful knowledge and technology, has been on a generally rising trend (Mussa, 2000). During the past half century, the pace of economic globalization has been particularly rapid. This includes the reversal of the interwar decline. Globalization is not new, it has only changed.
The definition of globalization is, “Globalization is the connection of different parts of the world. Globalization results in the expansion of international cultural, economic, and political activities. As people, ideas, knowledge, and goods move more easily around the globe, the experiences of people around the world become more
Globalization is a very complex phenomenon, basically it means the relationship and connection between countries are getting closer, and they have more contact, politically and economically. Globalization has influenced the world in many different ways, like culture, economy and politics.
Globalization plays a massive part in my life as it does in everyone’s lives. Every day the world is getting smaller, between technological improvements and peoples interest in these technologies it is easy to see why this is happening. In this essay I have only shortly touch upon some of the places where globalization has affected my everyday life. From shopping as Asda to meeting people on the other side of the world to discuss my dissertation ideas globalization has had a positive affect on my life. The fact that I can walk down a street in Coleraine or Sydney and see similar shops and food outlets is a positive thing in how our lives are intertwined through out the world.
"Globalization is a process of world shrinkage, of distances getting shorter, things moving closer. It pertains to t...