Politics 391CP - Capitalism II

The gains of global capitalism since the 2009 Great Recession and the laws and institutions organized to sustain the market have been breathtaking. What explains how and why citizens around the world have been unwilling or unable to imagine an alternative to free market competition? If citizens are genuinely committed to capitalism, why? During the first part of the course, we will consider these questions and the heightened fear that the triumph of the economy means the end of politics, at least in its democratic form. The second half of the course will conclude by examining the possibilities for post-capitalist politics, economic democracy, and alter-capitalism. Readings will include works by Hayek, Arendt, Lauren Berlant, Gar Alperovitz, and JK Gibson-Graham.