Abstract

Nations are the forms of political organisation which peoples construct for themselves. It is a commonplace to state that globalisation tends (for the better) towards the end of nations. However the history of capitalism shows that such a hypothesis is questionable. Globalisation is merely a stage in the development of capitalism, which has always leaned on certain nations to secure its deployment: England in the past, the US today. The real question is thus that of the hegemony of one nation over other nations and, ultimately, the question of democracy, the sovereignty of peoples in the face of capital.