Introduction

The chapter introduces the main purpose and themes of the book. It highlights the lack of engagement between the English School of International Relations and International Political Economy and suggests how the gap between them can be bridged. The two major aims of the book are: to establish the market as a primary institution of global international society; and to trace its emergence and fluctuating fortunes from the nineteenth century until today. The chapter ends with two injunctions. The first is to the English School, to incorporate the market, and the economic sector into its scheme of modern primary institutions. The second is to International Political Economy to take on board the distinction between primary and secondary institutions, which allows us to analyse the evolution of the global economy as part of the wider international structure of global international society. The chapter ends with an overview of the book.