The panel discussion revolved around the concept of capitalist modernity, which is a fundamental object of sociological inquiry centered on the rise of nation-states and European expansion effects. The roundtable presentations reveal that Lisa Lowe’s text, “The Intimacies of Four Continents,” gives a succinct overview of social and cultural conditions that culminate in the European concept of modernity. It emerges that Lowe explores the obscure connections between intercontinental exchanges of the period between the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century (Gopinath 00:37:15-00:41:35). The interconnection between land, race, and labor across Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas is shown to be a manifestation of the unique exchanges and interactions between these regions and Europe. In essence, each continent had a unique encounter with Europe, which culminated in a consistent pattern of perspectives about land, race, and labor across the globe.
Particularly, Lowe’s text is centered on European liberalism, settler colonialism in the Americas, the transatlantic slave trade touching on Africa, and trade relations between China and the West Indies. The influence of European expansion on these phenomena determined how people in different parts of the world conceptualized critical issues, such as land use and ownership, racial differences, human capital, and trade relations. For instance, land ownership became a critical issue in the Americas due to settler colonization. This concept dispersed over other regions, such as Africa, due to the European pursuit of natural resources. Forced labor gained momentum because settlers in the Americas needed workers in their farmlands. The demand fueled the transatlantic slave trade and racialized the commodification of humans (Gopinath 00:44:12-00:49:34). The Portuguese, the French, the British, and the Danish were the main slave-trading nations, although they collaborated with Asian traders in capturing blacks from Africa.
In overview, the discussion panel shows that Lowe’s book triggers a unique perspective of the foundations and impact of European expansion. In essence, the author’s exploration and account of the implications of European interactions with the world leads to the revelation that a shared pattern of perceptions about land, race, and labor exists across the continents. Notably, the concept of land ownership, racial superiority, and human capital emerged and spread throughout the globe due to the European expansion efforts.
Work Cited
Gopinath, Gayatri, et al. “Lisa Lowe’s ‘The Intimacies of Four Continents:’ A Roundtable.”YouTube, uploaded by American Studies Association Official, 2015.