Intro to Part 4: 1450-1750

In his introduction to this part of the book, Strayer notes how historians often describe this time period as representing the beginning of the Modern Era, seeing as it was during this period that Europeans began what would be a long period of domination over world affairs, which led to genuine globalization for the first time.  Certainly, the most obvious expression of this was the oceanic journeys of European explorers and the resulting conquest and colonial settlement of the Americas by Europeans.  In addition, the Atlantic slave trade also created a permanent link between Africa and the Western Hemisphere.  It should be noted, however, that while Europeans were the beneficiaries of this slave trade, African rulers also had a large amount of control over how the trade occurred.  Meanwhile, a global silver trade allowed Europeans to use metals found in the "New World," the Americas, to buy their way into old Asian trade routes.  The massive transfer of plants, animals, diseases, and people, known as the Columbian exchange, enabled the creation of completely new networks of interaction across both the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans.  This increase in globalization also allowed missionaries to spread Christianity far beyond Europe, which allowed for it to truly become a major world religion.
During this time period, small-scale signs of what would become known as modernity began to appear.  The most obvious of these took place in Europe, where the Scientific Revolution transformed people's view of the world, their approach to knowledge, and their understanding of Christianity.  In terms of demographics, China, Japan, India, and Europe experienced the beginnings of the modern population growth.  In various parts of Eurasia and the Americas, more highly commercialized economies centered around large cities began to develop.  Another developing global pattern during this time period was the emergence of strong and more cohesive states incorporating various local societies into larger units while actively promoting trade, manufacturing, and a common culture within their borders.
However, the whole story is much more than that, as European world domination and more fully modern societies were far from a sure thing at the time.  For example, even though Europe fully controlled the Americas and the world's sea routes, their influence was much more limited in Asia and Africa at this time.  Also, Christianity wasn't the most rapidly spreading faith during this time, but rather Islam, especially in Asia and Africa.  In terms of manufacturing output, Europe was about equal with China and India in 1750, so it was not obvious that Europeans would come to dominate the planet, nor that the population growth would be a lasting thing.
There also wasn't much evidence that anything like modern industrial society was on the horizon.  Electricity and machines were still far from being introduced, and wealthy elites still provided leadership, while rural peasants were the primary lower social group.  In addition, countries were still governed by kings and nobles, and females were subordinate almost everywhere.  In short, modern society hardly seemed fast approaching, and most people still lived in long-established traditional ways.
Overall, this era was as much a late agrarian era as it was an early modern era.  It can best be described as a time of transition, much as most time periods can be seen as.