A reading of Professor Frank's working paper "ReOrient..." (see wsn
archive) suggests to my mind that his conceptual model of the world
entails a single center; the world is a *monocentric* world. This single
center moves around the world as historical time progresses. (Similar to
the old Hegelian idea that the "Weltgeist" moves from place to place
throughout history.)
A *polycentric* concept of the world is advocated, for the future, by
Professor Amin.
This difference of conceptualization raises an interesting question with
respect to the interpretation of current world developments, namely:
Are present shifts in the world system
(a) Frankian -- i.e., *one* global center shifting from the "West" to the
"Orient" (where it used to be some time prior)? or,
(b) Aminian -- i.e., a world with one global center ("West") is evolving
into a world with several centers ("polycentric")?
Under interpretation (a) one could, perhaps, expect another hegemonic
power struggle and world war within the next 50 years. Under
interpretation (b) one could, perhaps, expect a more peaceful evolution
of the world system.
Kind regards,
--GK