Written between 1982 and 1989, this collection contains the author's perspective on the events of this period. The book also charts the development of a challenge to the dominant "geoculture": the cultural framework within which the world-system operates.

The author argues that since 1968 there has been a rejection of the universalist ideas of liberalism through an intellectual focus on 'culture' as opposed to economics and politics; a concern with the inherent existence of racism and sexism in the system; and a new relationship between the sciences and humanities. This collection offers the latest ideas of one of the most original and controversial thinkers of recent years, and is bound to stimulate debate among students and scholars from a variety of disciplines across the social sciences.