Superpowers Notes
Key terms
A superpower is a country which has the capacity to project dominating influence
anywhere in the world. Sometimes in more than one region simultaneously. They have
the ability to influence events in their own interest & project power on a global scale to
protect these interests.
Hegemony- a country’s total dominance over other countries. (‘supreme power’ >
‘superpower’)
Hyperpower- an unchallenged superpower.
Hard power- An expression of a country’s will through force. E.g. military interventions
& military posturing (carrying out military exercises).
Soft Power- Power (or influence) derived from a country’s culture, political values &
foreign policy. E.g. cultural attractiveness & political & economic influence.
Colonialism-this involves one country taking over another and their influencing the way
of life of the people there. During the imperial era, colonialism involved carrying out:
ethnic cleansing, direct military conquest/occupation of territory, cultural imperialism
through art, religion or language (British tea drinking/ the English language), economic
imperialism (exporting natural resources to home country) and challenging ownership
rights.
Neocolonialism- the control of less-developed countries by developed countries through
indirect means.
Postcolonialism- this is the period after the European empires (post WW2) when the
empires began to fall apart and countries gained independence, which had big impacts.
What makes a superpower?
Superpowers primarily have lots of economic & military power (USA & China).
However other factors are important too such as territory & location, economic
influences, demographics (population), political influence, military strength, cultural
influence & natural resources.
A large population is often seen as key to economic success as it means a country has: a
larger tax base, larger consumer market, more independence & a wider skill set. China
had 18.5% of global population in 2017 & India 17.9%.
Yet being strong in one of these categories doesn’t necessarily make a country a
superpower. For example:
o Canada has an area of 10million km² & covers 6 time zones (can do business at
different points in the day but is not considered a superpower.
o France is part of the EU, G7 & G20 & has a permanent seat on the UN Security
Council but is not considered a superpower. (Possibly due to the lack of global
, soft power (1.5billion people speak English as opposed to 220million French
speakers)).
o Saudi Arabia has the third largest defence budget ($81.9billion in 2015) but due
to its corruption, human rights violations & unfortunate global position, is not
considered a superpower.
o India has the largest global film industry (Bollywood) but this influence is only
limited to India’s large population compared to USA industry.
o Venezuela has one of the world’s largest oil reserves (worth $14.3 trillion) but
due to a corrupt government making strict restrictions on foreign currency, a high
crime rate & 1 in 3 people living in poverty, Venezuela has had little global
success.
Hard/Soft Power
While things such as military strength are important to a country being a superpower,
cultural attractiveness may also be just as important. For example, the US has a military
base on every continent (except Antarctica) & is part of NATO meaning it has lots of hard
power.
However, the US also has a huge global culture influence such as US movies, music, food
(McDonald’s) & TNCs meaning it has lots of soft power too.
The importance of these characteristics & mechanisms for maintaining power has
changed over time. For example, Mackinder’s ‘Heartland Theory’ stats that whoever
controls Europe & Asia, the largest l& masses, will gain control of the world. He believed
that the ‘heartland’ extended from Eastern Europe into Russia with there being a ‘pivot’
in the centre. By controlling the ‘pivot’, the heartland could be controlled which would
ultimately lead to global power.
Mackinder believed that it should be Russia who controlled this part of l& due to their
location & resources but, since they had poor governance & many borders, they were
considered weak. Instead, Britain rules the heartland because of its economic power,
industrial revolution & military power. Today however, controls much less violent &
more influential.
How has global power shifted over time?
From 1400 to around 1945 there was a multi-polar world which meant that there were
lots of different global empires. This is the most unstable type of world as countries
were constantly fighting over territory (colonialism). An example is the British Empire
which at one point held almost 1/4 of global land mass.
From 1945-1991 there was a bi-polar world which mean that there were 2 large
superpowers (USA & Russia) & countries would ally themselves with one of the sides
(Communist vs. capitalist). This period of history was named the Cold War & involved
post colonialism.
Key terms
A superpower is a country which has the capacity to project dominating influence
anywhere in the world. Sometimes in more than one region simultaneously. They have
the ability to influence events in their own interest & project power on a global scale to
protect these interests.
Hegemony- a country’s total dominance over other countries. (‘supreme power’ >
‘superpower’)
Hyperpower- an unchallenged superpower.
Hard power- An expression of a country’s will through force. E.g. military interventions
& military posturing (carrying out military exercises).
Soft Power- Power (or influence) derived from a country’s culture, political values &
foreign policy. E.g. cultural attractiveness & political & economic influence.
Colonialism-this involves one country taking over another and their influencing the way
of life of the people there. During the imperial era, colonialism involved carrying out:
ethnic cleansing, direct military conquest/occupation of territory, cultural imperialism
through art, religion or language (British tea drinking/ the English language), economic
imperialism (exporting natural resources to home country) and challenging ownership
rights.
Neocolonialism- the control of less-developed countries by developed countries through
indirect means.
Postcolonialism- this is the period after the European empires (post WW2) when the
empires began to fall apart and countries gained independence, which had big impacts.
What makes a superpower?
Superpowers primarily have lots of economic & military power (USA & China).
However other factors are important too such as territory & location, economic
influences, demographics (population), political influence, military strength, cultural
influence & natural resources.
A large population is often seen as key to economic success as it means a country has: a
larger tax base, larger consumer market, more independence & a wider skill set. China
had 18.5% of global population in 2017 & India 17.9%.
Yet being strong in one of these categories doesn’t necessarily make a country a
superpower. For example:
o Canada has an area of 10million km² & covers 6 time zones (can do business at
different points in the day but is not considered a superpower.
o France is part of the EU, G7 & G20 & has a permanent seat on the UN Security
Council but is not considered a superpower. (Possibly due to the lack of global
, soft power (1.5billion people speak English as opposed to 220million French
speakers)).
o Saudi Arabia has the third largest defence budget ($81.9billion in 2015) but due
to its corruption, human rights violations & unfortunate global position, is not
considered a superpower.
o India has the largest global film industry (Bollywood) but this influence is only
limited to India’s large population compared to USA industry.
o Venezuela has one of the world’s largest oil reserves (worth $14.3 trillion) but
due to a corrupt government making strict restrictions on foreign currency, a high
crime rate & 1 in 3 people living in poverty, Venezuela has had little global
success.
Hard/Soft Power
While things such as military strength are important to a country being a superpower,
cultural attractiveness may also be just as important. For example, the US has a military
base on every continent (except Antarctica) & is part of NATO meaning it has lots of hard
power.
However, the US also has a huge global culture influence such as US movies, music, food
(McDonald’s) & TNCs meaning it has lots of soft power too.
The importance of these characteristics & mechanisms for maintaining power has
changed over time. For example, Mackinder’s ‘Heartland Theory’ stats that whoever
controls Europe & Asia, the largest l& masses, will gain control of the world. He believed
that the ‘heartland’ extended from Eastern Europe into Russia with there being a ‘pivot’
in the centre. By controlling the ‘pivot’, the heartland could be controlled which would
ultimately lead to global power.
Mackinder believed that it should be Russia who controlled this part of l& due to their
location & resources but, since they had poor governance & many borders, they were
considered weak. Instead, Britain rules the heartland because of its economic power,
industrial revolution & military power. Today however, controls much less violent &
more influential.
How has global power shifted over time?
From 1400 to around 1945 there was a multi-polar world which meant that there were
lots of different global empires. This is the most unstable type of world as countries
were constantly fighting over territory (colonialism). An example is the British Empire
which at one point held almost 1/4 of global land mass.
From 1945-1991 there was a bi-polar world which mean that there were 2 large
superpowers (USA & Russia) & countries would ally themselves with one of the sides
(Communist vs. capitalist). This period of history was named the Cold War & involved
post colonialism.
