Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
This innovative new volume is unique in bringing together political theory and social theory to produce a synthetic and coherent critique of political economy, both historically and in terms of contemporary developments.
The book combines critique, original formulations, and case studies. Part One deals with the accounts of social change developed in classical social theory (with respect to modernity and the rise of a market society) and contemporary social thought (with respect to the second, or reflexive, modernization and the reforms promoted by neoliberalism worldwide). The book argues that, rather than overcoming the limitation of classical accounts of modernization, contemporary social thought has developed a sociological version of spontaneous order uncannily similar to that found in political economy. Part Two is rooted in organizational and economic sociology, and offers a network-theoretical critique of economics imperialism and theories of autopoietic systems, whilst Part Three explores the political promises of the policy innovations discussed in the previous part and contrasts these with the realities those innovations are producing.
This highly original work offers a distinctive transdisciplinary approach to political economy.
Synopsis
Neoliberalism has been one of the most hotly contested themes in academic and political debate over the last 30 years. Given the global and persistent influence of neoliberal ideas on contemporary styles of governance, social-service provision, and public policy, this intensive interest is understandable. At the same time, the use of the term has become loose, vague, and over-extended, particularly in the extensive critical literature. Rather than engage in further critique, or in the reconstruction of the history of neoliberalism, this volume seeks to bring analytical clarity to the ongoing debate.
Drawing inspiration from the work of the Hungarian economic historian, Karl Polanyi, Remaking Market Society combines critique, original formulations, and case studies to form an analytical framework that identifies the key instruments of neoliberal governance. These include privatization, marketization, and liberalization. The case studies examine the development of neoliberal instruments (reform of the British civil service); their refinement (reform of higher education in England and Wales); and their dissemination across national borders (EU integration policies). Rather than look back nostalgically on the post-war welfare-state settlement, in the final chapter the authors ask why the coalitions that supported that settlement broke down in the face of the neoliberal reform movement.
This highly original work offers a distinctive transdisciplinary approach to political economy, and therefore is an important read for students and academics who are interested in political economy as well as social theory and political philosophy.