First published in 1982, this reissue deals with the theory of underdevelopment, as Dr. de Silva attempts a synthesis between the internal and external aspects of underdevelopment and, in the Marxist tradition, focuses on the impact of the external on the internal as the dominant reality.Viewing underdevelopment as a problem in the non-transformation to capitalism, this analysis is in terms of the character of the dominant capital and of the dominant classes. Underdevelopment thus encompasses the `traditional¿ peasant economy and also the export sector where the `modernizing¿ influence of colonialism was felt. The book finally considers how the contemporary internationalization of capital affected the economies of the Third World.