The Economy as Cultural System Theory, Capitalism, Crisis

by Dufresne, Todd; Sacchetti, Clara

• ISBN13: 9781441140036
• ISBN10: 1441140034
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-11-08
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic

Summary

The 2008 global crisis, unemployment, lack of retirement funds, bank bailouts... today, the "economy" is on everyone's mind. But what makes this rather opaque concept work? This collection of essays seeks out the answer by exploring contemporary capitalism from a variety of theoretical perspectives and by confronting the economy as a cultural system, a theory, and a driving force of every day life in the West. The first part of the book discusses past and present representation of capitalism (from Hegel and Marx to Negri and Florida) along with their continuing impact. The second part focuses on capitalism as a locus of power and resistance, and maps possible responses to the current situation. The roles of metaphor and discourse is examined throughout to rethink the implications of power in the context of globalization and consumer culture.Each chapter features an abstract, study questions, as well as further reading suggestions, which, along with its accessible theoretical coverage, will make the book an essential study tool for students in social and political thought, globalization, and social theory.

Author Biography

Clara Sacchetti is an Adjunct Professor for Philosophy and a sessional lecturer for Women's Studies at Lakehead University, Canada. Her areas of interest include studies in feminist theory, post-colonial history, and postmodernism. She has published feature articles and reviews in FUSE Magazine, Boston Book Review, CAN, and The Semiotic Review of Books. Todd Dufresne is Professor of Philosophy at Lakehead University, Canada. He is the author and editor of numerous books, including Tales from the Freudian Crypt (Stanford UP).

Table of Contents

Preface (Todd Dufresne) \ Introduction: The Economy as Cultural System: Theory, Capitalism, Crisis (Clara Sacchetti) \ 1. The I/Eye of Capital: Classical Theoretical Perspectives on the Spectral Economies of Late Capitalism (Thomas M. Kemple) \ 2. Can't Buy Me Love: Psychiatric Capitalism and the Economics of Happiness (Joel Faflak) \ 3. Metaphoric Wealth: Finance, Financialization, and the End of Narrative (Max Haiven) \ 4. The Burden of Metaphor: Marx's Vampires, Populist Politics, and the Dialectics of Capitalist Abstraction (Matthew MacLellan) \ 5. Critical Theory Against the Dispossession of Needs: From Perpetual Crisis to Social Engagement (Tim Kaposy) \ 6. Finance and the Social Time of Aging: Toward a Synthesis (Justin Sully) \ 7. The Work Idea: Wage Slavery, Bullshit, and the Good Infinite (Mark Kingwell) \ 8. The Uniqueness of Late Capitalism: Biopower and Biopolitics (Kezia Picard) \ 9. Place, Creativity, and Richard Florida: On the Aesthetics of Economic Development (Todd Dufresne and Clara Sacchetti) \ 10. Franco "Bifo" Berardi & the Future of Capitalism: "We Have to Run Along The Line of Catastrophe" (Andrew Pendakis) \ References