Introduction: Unbound Morphogenesis in a Closed World

Abstract

This chapter introduces the main theses, argument and approach of the volume. In the first place, it lays out the two guiding insights that constitute the underlying common thread of the book, namely the hypothesis of an emergent morphogenic society and the idea of the closure of the world. Then the theoretical approach is briefly introduced, explaining the basic meaning of social morphogenesis in the context of this work. The chapter goes on to illustrate the general aim of the volume, which lies in both substantive and formal theory. On the one hand, it provides a unified interpretive key to many social phenomena that characterize global society, exploring the social mechanisms at work to produce deep change and the emergent structures that might result. On the other hand, the morphogenetic approach deployed to such a task is further developed, through an open dialogue with other paradigms and the test of its capacity to produce useful insights about social change. The Introduction closes with an outline of the chapters and a brief discussion of the main problems involved in the chosen approach and research fields.