Progressive theorists and activists insist that contemporary capitalism is deeply flawed from a normative point of view. However, most accept the liberal egalitarian thesis that the serious shortcomings of market societies (financial excess, inequality, and so on) could be overcome with proper political regulation. Building on Marx's legacy, Tony Smith argues in Beyond Liberal Egalitarianism that advocates of this thesis (Rawls, Habermas, Stiglitz, et al.) lack an adequate concept of capital and the state. These theorists also fail to comprehend new developments in world history ensuring that the 'destructive' aspects of capitalism increasingly outweigh whatever 'creative' elements it might continue to possess. Smith concludes that a normative social theory adequate to the twenty-first century must explicitly and unequivocally embrace socialism.
ISBN: 9781608469970
Publication date: October 30, 2018
“Beyond Liberal Egalitarianism provides [...] an excellent account of why Marx thought that a capitalist market society will never deliver freedom, equality and human flourishing. It is an important resource for anyone who wants to understand the challenge Marx presents to liberal egalitarian political philosophy.”
—Jan Kandiyali, Marx & Philosophy Review of Books
“The most important contribution to a dialogue between liberals and Marxists since C. B. MacPherson’s analysis of possessive individualism.”
—Matthew McManus, Liberal Currents
“The appearance of this book, especially in the current era of the dominance of normative social and political theory in departments of analytic philosophy, is most welcome.”
—Arash Abazari, Journal of Moral Philosophy
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