TY - JOUR
T1 - Reversal of fortune or continued misery? Ulbe Bosma’s Making of a Periphery reviewed
AU - van Nederveen Meerkerk, E.J.V.
PY - 2020/12
Y1 - 2020/12
N2 - With his latest book, The Making of a Periphery, Ulbe Bosma makes a successful attempt to “decompress history”. Apart from praising his work, I want to offer two critical comments and a suggestion for global comparison. First, I argue that the role of colonialism/imperialism is somewhat downplayed in the book. Second, although I am impressed by the vast body of literature cited, I believe that at several instances the book might have benefited from its arguments being underpinned by more solid empirical quantitative data. Finally, I raise the question how unique the “plantation economies” of Island South East Asia actually were, which also implies a suggestion for further research along the lines of Bosma's impressive monograph.
AB - With his latest book, The Making of a Periphery, Ulbe Bosma makes a successful attempt to “decompress history”. Apart from praising his work, I want to offer two critical comments and a suggestion for global comparison. First, I argue that the role of colonialism/imperialism is somewhat downplayed in the book. Second, although I am impressed by the vast body of literature cited, I believe that at several instances the book might have benefited from its arguments being underpinned by more solid empirical quantitative data. Finally, I raise the question how unique the “plantation economies” of Island South East Asia actually were, which also implies a suggestion for further research along the lines of Bosma's impressive monograph.
U2 - 10.1017/S0020859020000553[Opens in a new window]
DO - 10.1017/S0020859020000553[Opens in a new window]
M3 - Article
SN - 0020-8590
VL - 65
SP - 495
EP - 505
JO - International Review of Social History
JF - International Review of Social History
IS - 3
ER -