Nancy Fraser on Alternatives to Capitalism
Future Histories International
Critique of Cannibal Capitalism
This chapter critically examines capitalism as a system that exploits both ecological and social resources, coining the term 'cannibal capitalism.' It emphasizes the urgent need for re-evaluation of economic systems to account for the societal and environmental costs of wealth extraction. The discussion explores potential alternatives that prioritize accountability, democratic decision-making, and the integration of social and ecological considerations into economic practices.
Nancy Fraser discusses her understanding of capitalism as an integrated social order and explores its implications for envisioning a desirable postcapitalism.
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If you are interested in democratic economic planning, these resources might be of help:
Democratic planning – an information website
https://www.democratic-planning.com/
Sorg, C. & Groos, J. (eds.)(2025). Rethinking Economic Planning. Competition & Change Special Issue Volume 29 Issue 1.
https://journals.sagepub.com/toc/ccha/29/1
Groos, J. & Sorg, C. (2025). Creative Construction - Democratic Planning in the 21st Century and Beyond. Bristol University Press.
https://bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/creative-construction
International Network for Democratic Economic Planning
Democratic Planning Research Platform:
https://www.planningresearch.net/
Democratic Planning Forum:
https://forum.democratic-planning.com/
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Remarque Institute
https://as.nyu.edu/research-centers/remarque.html
Nancy Fraser at The New School for Social Research:
https://www.newschool.edu/nssr/faculty/nancy-fraser/
Fraser, N. (2023). Cannibal Capitalism: How our System is Devouring Democracy, Care, and the Planet and What We Can Do About It. Verso Books.
Ivkovic, M., & Zaric, Z. (2024). Nancy Fraser and Politics. Edinburgh University Press.
https://edinburghuniversitypress.com/book-nancy-fraser-and-politics.html
Fraser, N., & Jaeggi, R. (2023). Capitalism: A Conversation in Critical Theory. Verso Books.
https://www.versobooks.com/products/2867-capitalism
Fraser, N. (2022) Benjamin Lecture 3 – Class beyond Class (Video)
https://youtu.be/jf6laSf6Eko?si=iWL-Za4pPPwF0xvb
on social differentiation as discussed in sociology:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Differentiation_(sociology)
Rodney, W. (2018). How Europe underdeveloped Africa. Verso Books.
on Marx’s account of surplus value:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surplus_value
Robaszkiewicz, M. & Weinman, M. (2023) Hannah Arendt and Politics. Edinburgh University Press.
https://edinburghuniversitypress.com/book-hannah-arendt-and-politics.html
Vančura, M. (2011) Polanyi’s Great Transformation and the concept of the embedded economoy. IES Occasional Paper No. 2/2011
https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/83289/1/668400315.pdf
Elson, D. (2015). Value: The Representation of Labour in Capitalism. Verso Books.
Robertson, J. (2017) The Life and Death of Yugoslav Socialism. Jacobin.
https://jacobin.com/2017/07/yugoslav-socialism-tito-self-management-serbia-balkans
Moore, J. W. (2015). Capitalism in the web of life: Ecology and the accumulation of capital. Verso Books.
https://www.versobooks.com/products/74-capitalism-in-the-web-of-life
Patel, R., & Moore, J. W. (2018). A History of the World in Seven Cheap Things: A Guide to Capitalism, Nature, and the Future of the Planet. Verso Books.
Brand, U., & Wissen, M. (2021). The Imperial Mode of Living: Everyday Life and the Ecological Crisis of Capitalism. Verso Books.
Bates, T. R. (1975) Gramsci and the Theory of Hegemony. Journal of the History of Ideas Vol. 36 No. 2.
https://www.jstor.org/stable/2708933
Bois, W. E. B. Du. (1935). Black Reconstruction. An Essay toward a History of the Part which Black Folk played in the Attempt to Reconstruct Democracy in America, 1860-1880. Harcourt, Brace and Company.
Trotsky, L. (1938) The Transitional Program. Bulletin of the Opposition.
https://www.marxists.org/archive/trotsky/1938/tp/
Morris, W. (1890) News from Nowhere. Commonweal.
https://www.marxists.org/archive/morris/works/1890/nowhere/nowhere.htm
Hayek, F. A. von. (1945). The Use of Knowledge in Society. The American Economic Review, 35(4).
https://www.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/articles/hayek-use-knowledge-society.pdf
Schliesser, E. (2020) On Foucault on 17 January 1979 On the Market’s Role (as site) of Veridiction (III) Digressions & Impressions Blog.
Foucault, M. (2008). The Birth of Biopolitics: Lectures at the Collège De France, 1978-1979. Palgrave Macmillan.
https://1000littlehammers.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/birth_of_biopolitics.pdf
Marx, K. (1973) Grundrisse: Foundations of the Critique of Political Economy. Penguin.
https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/download/pdf/grundrisse.pdf
on Bernard Mandeville and “Private Vice, Public Virtue”:
Kaufmann, F. (1959) John Dewey’s Theory of Inquiry. The Journal of Philosophy, Vol. 56, No. 21.
https://www.jstor.org/stable/2022592
on Habermas:
https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/habermas/
on “Neurath’s boat”:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurath%27s_boat
Future Histories Episodes on Related Topics
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S03E19 | Wendy Brown on Socialist Governmentality
https://www.futurehistories.today/episoden-blog/s03/e19-wendy-brown-on-socialist-governmentality/
S03E04 | Tim Platenkamp on Republican Socialism, General Planning and Parametric Control
S03E03 | Planning for Entropy on Sociometabolic Planning
S03E02 | George Monbiot on Public Luxury
https://www.futurehistories.today/episoden-blog/s03/e02-george-monbiot-on-public-luxury/
S02E51 | Silvia Federici on Progress, Reproduction and Commoning
S02E33 | Pat Devine on Negotiated Coordination
https://www.futurehistories.today/episoden-blog/s02/e33-pat-devine-on-negotiated-coordination/
S03E23 | Andreas Malm on Overshooting into Climate Breakdown
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Episode Keywords
#NancyFraser, #JanGroos, #Podcast, #Socialism, #PostCapitalism, #Capitalism, #MarketPower, #Markets, #EconomicDemocracy, #PatDevine, #WorkingClass, #WelfareState, #CriticalTheory, #Markets, #Veridiction, #Foucault, #Governmentality, #Care, #CareWork, #Labour, #Labor, #Race, #Imperialism, #DemocraticPlanning, #EconomicPlanning, #SocialReproduction, #PostcapitalistReproduction, #Ecology, #FutureHistoriesInternational, #Boundaries, #CannibalCapitalism, #Socialism
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