The world society, the intersystems and a new history of capitalism

• Esteban TORRES Universidad Nacional de Córdoba-CONICET

Keywords: World society, Social change, Historical systems, Centre/periphery, Capitalist forms

Abstract

In the article I develop some components of a new theory of World Society, rooted in a non-Eurocentric history of the planet, which broadly takes into account the social transformations of the last centuries. This proposal builds on the guiding principles of the "World Paradigm" that I have been developing.  Among other issues, here I propose to move from the idea of national society to the notion of "Intersociety". I then present the systems that make up contemporary World Society and that were created through a long historical succession: the Natural system, the Patriarchal system, the Interracial system, the Interstate system, the Intercapital system and the Intercommunication system. I then discuss, on an abstract level, the question of the social determination of all of them. Finally, I concentrate on the conceptual development and analysis of the "Intercapital system", in order to offer a new interpretation of the history of capitalism.