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

by Neil Davidson

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.

Genres: Economics, History, Nonfiction

270 pages, Hardcover

Published November 14, 2023

About the author

Neil Davidson lectured in sociology at the University of Glasgow and is the author of six books, including the Deutscher Prize–winning Discovering the Scottish Revolution and, most recently, Nation-States. He wrote some of the most widely read analyses of the previous referendum and Scottish independence for journals including Bella Caledonia, Jacobin, New Left Review, Radical Philosophy and Salvage.

Reviews

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this book, the late Comrade Neil Davidson aims to provide a scientific analysis of the neoliberal era as a totality. With this task, he is successful. Davidson not only takes on the mythology forwarded by the Hayeks, the Thatchers, the Friedmans, and so on, but engages critically with contemporary opponents of neoliberalism, namely David Harvey and Naomi Klein. I found this to be particularly informative and central to the arguments made throughout the book. Davidson notes that Harvey and his supporters inadvertently forward neoliberal mythology when they deem the neoliberal turn as a "restoration". A restoration from what, Davidson asks, were the expropriators expropriated in the 50s and 60s? Was the bourgeoisie no longer the ruling class? Harvey and co. claim that the post-war period of state intervention was supposedly "detrimental to capital, when in fact this was the period when it enjoyed the highest levels of growth in the history of the system." (p. 36) Davidson similarly reproaches Klein for her ahistorical claims that neoliberal ideology was a project waiting for the right opportunity for implementation. Davidson on the contrary proves both logically and historically that the neoliberal shift was "not as Klein claims because of individual opportunities to do so which previously had been missing finally presented themselves, but because changed conditions of accumulation required changed strategies." (p. 67) "Rather than inspiring policy positions," the theory of Friedman and Hayek "gave ideological support to those which the government were already intent on adopting." (p. 62)

Davidson puts particular focus on the case of Britain, discussing in detail the Thatcherist phenomenon, challenging the commonplace misconceptions about this period and the social-neoliberal era afterwards. He details the terrible costs of the neoliberal regime, culture under neoliberalism, and the place of the state in neoliberal practice extensively.

Crucially, in the sketches of the conclusion, Davidson stresses that "a collapse not brought about by the conscious intervention of the oppressed and exploited would not be to their advantage in any case, but simply a step towards the barbarism to which Marxists from Engels onwards have seen as a consequence of failing to achieve a socialist society." (p. 179)

I did find the writing style (which sometimes entails whole pages of "as x said: *insert block quote* as y added: *insert block quote*") to be clunky and at times a bit hard to follow. This is largely a result of the manuscript being unfinished at the time of the author's passing. I am sure Davidson would have cleaned it up had he completed the work.

Otherwise, this is a comprehensive study of the neoliberal era and an excellent resource. Highly recommended.

[Colin Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This superb book is an unparalleled assessment of what neoliberalism meant - in fact, it provides a historical overview of imperialism, the post-war boom, the "vanguard neoliberalism" of Thatcher and Reagan and the "social neoliberalism" of Blair and since.

Key points for me include:
1. the deeply reactionary side of much of the postwar settlement -so often celebrated as the golden age of the British left, and which did involve some gains for workers - clearest in its politics around gender and sexuality;
2. contradictions within neoliberalism - for example, Thatcher wanted to go back to the repressive 1950s family, but had abolished many of the structures of post-war welfarism that made it possible;
3. neoliberal rhetoric attacking the state bore little relation to a reality where state services like education and welfare remained essential to profitability;
4. social democratic parties like Labour relied on capitalist profits to fund reforms - the long-term crisis of profitability that first prompted neoliberalism poses existential strategic problems for them.

It's all too horribly clear how much we have lost with Neil's untimely death - both the left in general, and in particular rs21, the organisation to which he belonged, of which I'm also a member. We can't discuss the book - I'd want to ask him if the link between 60s/70s movements for sexual liberation and neoliberal individualist consumerism is as straightforward as I think he's suggesting. More than anything, we can't hear his opinion on our current situation, with the rise of the far right around the world - has social neoliberalism ended and what is taking its place? But this book gives us many examples of what methods to use to start responding to those questions.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really an excellent explanation of the (ongoing) neoliberal era. Unfortunately the author died as he was writing this collection of essays. I’m curious as to why the author cut the neoliberal era off at 2008, because as someone currently living in 2024 I don’t see Neoliberalism losing any steam yet, regrettably.

[K.E · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting and easy to understand!

[Leo · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s a helpful analysis of neoliberalism. some of the arguments were presented in way that was at times confusing, but I also read this very sporadically