Dependency and Development: An Introduction to the Third World

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This book draws upon data and theories from economics, political science, anthropology, demography, and environmental studies to provide a broad interdisciplinary overview of the Third World. A brief history shows how the expansion of Europe in the 15th century created dependencies in Latin America, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. The Third World is shown to be not a natural or innate phenomenon, but a consequence of its relationship to the First World that involved economic dependency, rapid population growth, inflated and internationally supplied militaries, and governments trying to provide attractive investment climates for huge multinational corporations. Traditional agriculture, world markets, models of development, human rights violations, environmental degradation, and the demographic transition are examined from a balanced theoretical perspective that synthesizes modernization and dependency approaches.

Reviews

Lewellen offers a unique and valuable overview of economic development. It is the perspective of a cultural anthropologist who is concerned about Third World economic dependency and the lack of variety of economic development models. The author leaves the highly stylized development theory to economists and focuses more on the inequalities and inequities of the past and present world order. His chapter on human rights is outstanding. It is a strong descriptive and historical indictment of the support that the developed world has frequently given to abusive governments of the Third World. Highly recommended to general readers and academics alike.-Choice
"Lewellen offers a unique and valuable overview of economic development. It is the perspective of a cultural anthropologist who is concerned about Third World economic dependency and the lack of variety of economic development models. The author leaves the highly stylized development theory to economists and focuses more on the inequalities and inequities of the past and present world order. His chapter on human rights is outstanding. It is a strong descriptive and historical indictment of the support that the developed world has frequently given to abusive governments of the Third World. Highly recommended to general readers and academics alike."-Choice

Author Bio

TED C. LEWELLEN is Professor of Anthropology at the University of Richmond in Virginia. He is the author of Peasants in Transition (1976) and Political Anthropology, now in its second edition (Bergin & Garvey, 1992).