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Appadurai's Disjuncture and Scapes explained by Kalyani Vallath

Arjun Appadurai is a major theorist in globalization studies. His work comes within Marxist Cultural Studies.

Courtesy: https://www.arjunappadurai.org/


How does he explain Globalization?
Globalization has led to a borderless economy that has brought in huge changes in cultures. Though the world seems borderless now, it is far from being homogenous or united.  Appadurai holds that when money, people, culture, etc "flow" or get exchanged in this globalized world, it results in a "Disjuncture". Disjuncture means disjointed in nature, lacking in harmony. So, what Appadurai means is that even when there is a growing interrelationship and interdependence between various elements in the globalized world, there is also an increasing disjuncture between them. This he discussed in his most famous work, the essay "Disjuncture and Difference in the Global Cultural Economy".

The Scapes
Appadurai holds that people perceive their globalized realities in terms of five elements: Ethnoscape, Mediascape, Technoscape, Finanscape and Ideoscape.  These five scapes refer to the global flow of People, Media images / Information, Technology, Money and Ideologies respectively. These scapes are in disjuncture or conflict with one another. For example, the Ethnoscape of Kashmir is in disjuncture with the Ideoscape of India. The Finanscape of multinational corporations undermine local Ideoscapes.

The relation between these scapes creates contemporary culture.  Appadurai's views on this globally imagined world defined by these scapes is similar to Benedict Anderson's view of Nations as imagined communities.
End of Cultural Studies Terms 4.

To know more about the author of this blog, visit www.kalyanivallath.com
This is an initiative of TES Education.
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