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BRICS: An Anti-Capitalist Critique
One of the major success stories for capitalism in recent decades has been the rise of the BRICS—Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, developing nations that have seen strong growth and have become major international economic players. But their rise brings with it a number of important questions for economics, politics, and democracy, questions taken up by a roster of stellar contributors in An Anti-Capitalist Critique.
Offering critical analyses of the rise of the BRICS economies within the framework of a predatory, exclusionary, and unequal global capitalism, the contributors tackle questions such Will the BRICS force social change and innovation on the established economic and political order? Do they herald a new opening for democracy and human rights, or are they likely to be forces of political repression? What should we expect in the coming years, especially as some of these economies face significant hurdles in the wake of the global financial crisis? A contrarian, anti-capitalist exploration of some of the most important national economies in the world today, BRICS offers a much-needed counterpoint to mainstream analysis.
Offering critical analyses of the rise of the BRICS economies within the framework of a predatory, exclusionary, and unequal global capitalism, the contributors tackle questions such Will the BRICS force social change and innovation on the established economic and political order? Do they herald a new opening for democracy and human rights, or are they likely to be forces of political repression? What should we expect in the coming years, especially as some of these economies face significant hurdles in the wake of the global financial crisis? A contrarian, anti-capitalist exploration of some of the most important national economies in the world today, BRICS offers a much-needed counterpoint to mainstream analysis.
248 pages, Hardcover
First published October 13, 2015
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174 people want to read
About the author
Patrick Bond
48 books8 followersPatrick Bond is a professor at the University of KwaZulu-Natal and director of its Centre for Civil Society since 2004. He received his PhD from the Department of Geography and Environmental Engineering at Johns Hopkins University in 1993. In his work he focuses on political economy, NGO work and global justice movements in various countries.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 20, 2018
Not that many years back, BRICS, the acronym invented by a Goldman Sachs strategist in 2001, seemed to be on everyone's lips. A debate about whether this bloc of high-growth, populous and geostrategically energetic states could serve as a bulwark against the hegemony of the U.S. and its traditional allies (Western Europe and Japan) ensued on the left. I must admit that at the time I too succumbed to the notion that BRICS might hold some promise, though I didn't know much about it , nor were my politics as evolved as they are today.
The contributors to this book all take a very critical view towards the BRICS that's exhibited in concrete events, as opposed to the BRICS as it exists in the rhetoric leadership is using to tap into "third-worldist" hopes (or fantasies?). As the subtitle reveals, this is an anticapitalist, mostly Marxist-inspired critique, which points to the BRICS's more or less complete surrender to neoliberal globalization, and the countries' accompanying attempts to create their own centers of accumulation. While they agree on this premise, the contributors come from different theoretical backgrounds, and differ in their interpretation and emphasis. The chapters differ quite widely in terms of topics, and while some of them are focused on theory, others are purely empirical. Not that this in itself is a bad thing, I just think in this case it all feels a bit disjointed, and the quality is uneven.
If you just want to get the best/most stimulating parts, I'd suggest you read chapters 1, 2, 5, 7, 11, 14, 19, 21, and 23, and for the love of God, do avoid the jargony wordsalad that is chapter 3.
The contributors to this book all take a very critical view towards the BRICS that's exhibited in concrete events, as opposed to the BRICS as it exists in the rhetoric leadership is using to tap into "third-worldist" hopes (or fantasies?). As the subtitle reveals, this is an anticapitalist, mostly Marxist-inspired critique, which points to the BRICS's more or less complete surrender to neoliberal globalization, and the countries' accompanying attempts to create their own centers of accumulation. While they agree on this premise, the contributors come from different theoretical backgrounds, and differ in their interpretation and emphasis. The chapters differ quite widely in terms of topics, and while some of them are focused on theory, others are purely empirical. Not that this in itself is a bad thing, I just think in this case it all feels a bit disjointed, and the quality is uneven.
If you just want to get the best/most stimulating parts, I'd suggest you read chapters 1, 2, 5, 7, 11, 14, 19, 21, and 23, and for the love of God, do avoid the jargony wordsalad that is chapter 3.
August 31, 2021
This is a non-fic collection of articles with (neo?)-Marxist view on BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa). I’m quite critical about Marxism in general, so I decided to I read it as a Buddy Read in August 2021 at Non Fiction Book Club group, so that I can see and understand the other side.
In short – I failed, getting just a quarter of the book and putting it aside.
One of the main problems with this book was that it is ‘preaching to a choir’ kind of collection of articles, so there are established ideas the authors don’t bother to reiterate. For example, the first part tries to frame BRICS as a sub-imperialists, with ‘true’ imperialists being the US and Western Europe. On the one hand, I doubt that ‘sub-’ is needed for established old Empires like Russia and China and on the other, if we talk politics and ideology, I doubt that we should see say India and China as working together against ‘the West’, so the very collection of them under one roof is questionable. This is seconded by some of them, e.g. the quote:
If any coherence exists among the BRICS countries – countries that are historically, culturally, geographically and economically disparate – is it manifest in an international trend on behalf of a broad humanitarian project? Or do the BRICS countries come together to guarantee themselves a place in the present international order, not to subvert it, but to secure room at the top of the pyramid for at least their dominant classes and enriched elites? A more reasonable expectation seems to be that the BRICS member-states demonstrate new contradictions.
Also the authors just assume some things as bad, e.g. international trade and I don’t agree with that.
In short – I failed, getting just a quarter of the book and putting it aside.
One of the main problems with this book was that it is ‘preaching to a choir’ kind of collection of articles, so there are established ideas the authors don’t bother to reiterate. For example, the first part tries to frame BRICS as a sub-imperialists, with ‘true’ imperialists being the US and Western Europe. On the one hand, I doubt that ‘sub-’ is needed for established old Empires like Russia and China and on the other, if we talk politics and ideology, I doubt that we should see say India and China as working together against ‘the West’, so the very collection of them under one roof is questionable. This is seconded by some of them, e.g. the quote:
If any coherence exists among the BRICS countries – countries that are historically, culturally, geographically and economically disparate – is it manifest in an international trend on behalf of a broad humanitarian project? Or do the BRICS countries come together to guarantee themselves a place in the present international order, not to subvert it, but to secure room at the top of the pyramid for at least their dominant classes and enriched elites? A more reasonable expectation seems to be that the BRICS member-states demonstrate new contradictions.
Also the authors just assume some things as bad, e.g. international trade and I don’t agree with that.
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October 25, 2015Interesting collection, and the chapters by Patrick Bond are especially great. Other chapters were more or less stating the obvious. Lesson of the book: the BRICS are neither anti capitalist nor anti imperialist.
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February 3, 2022DNF for now. I lost interest after reading three to four essays. Interesting ideas, but the delivery left me a bit lost.
January 15, 2021
Bond includes a large array of important discussions regarding BRICS and their role in the world and transnational capitalism. From criticisms of their imperialism to an exploration of the BRICS from Below strategy. BRICS: An Anti-Capitalist Critique builds arguments about how BRICS struggles in its role and goes against its original belief to be a force for world peace and a strong fighter against imperialism. The book is a great introduction to BRICS from a leftist perspective but parts of the book can get repetitive and some chapters are a lot more interesting than others. Due to this inconsistency I give this 4 stars instead of 5. Still a wonderful book that I recommend to people who already have previous knowledge about BRICS and leftist politics and transnational capitalism, since not having knowledge beforehand can make this a difficult read.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews