What Was Neoliberalism? : Studies in the Most Recent Phase of Capitalism, 1973-2008

Eminent scholar-activist Neil Davidson's brilliance is on full display in this posthumous work, a timely and prescient introduction to the neoliberal era. While it is widely agreed that neoliberalism arose in the wake of the global economic crisis of the 1970s, there remains much debate about how to understand its significance and even how to define it. Is it best seen as an ideology of free market fundamentalism, a series of policy decisions gutting the public sector and breaking unions, or as an era of capitalist development with its own logic Bringing his considerable intellectual breadth and characteristic generosity to bear on this question, Neil Davidson shows that to truly appreciate what is unique about neoliberalism, and what marks it out as a continuation of capitalism more generally, it is necessary to examine its social dimensions. What Was Neoliberalism? holds fast to Davidson's conviction that thoroughly understanding the past means being better prepared for the struggles of the future. Contents PREFACE INTRODUCTION: THE END OF NEOLIBERALISM? Chapter 1: False Intellectual Antecedents and True Material Origins: The Innocence of Mr. Adam Smith Chapter 2: Vanguard Neoliberalism: Regimes of Reorientation, 1974–1991 Chapter 3: Social Neoliberalism: Regimes of Consolidation, 1992–2007 Chapter 4: Boom Economies? Chapter 5: Broken Societies? Chapter 6: Market States? Conclusion: A New Phase of Capitalist Development or a “Third Period” of Neoliberalism? REFERENCES NOTES INDEX