Capitalism and its Uncertain Future (original) (raw)

I know of no similar theory project in the past, and the realization of it in this new book by Plys and Lemert is very impressive. Suddenly it seems like this book was exactly what we needed. Original, timely, supremely useful."-Etienne Balibar, Co-author of Race, Nation, Class "Plys and Lemert draw upon Marxist, postmodern, and postcolonial perspectives to offer new ways of thinking about capitalism and its future. For anyone interested in decolonizing theories of historical capitalism, this book is essential."-Julian Go, University of Chicago, author of Postcolonial Thought and Social Theory Capitalism and Its Uncertain Future For decades, Charles Lemert has been the leading voice in social theory. In Capitalism and Its Uncertain Future he teams up with one of the most creative emerging social theorists, Kristin Plys, to examine how social theory imagines capitalism. This engaging and innovative book provides new perspectives on well known theorists from Adam Smith, and Frantz Fanon, to Gilles Deleuze, while also introducing readers to lesser known theorists such as Lucia Sanchez Saornil, Mohammad Ali El Hammi, and many more. The book examines theories of capitalism from four perspectives: macrohistorical theories of the origins of capitalism; postcolonial theories of capitalism that situate capitalism as seen from the Global South; theories of capitalism from the perspective of labor; and prospective theories of capitalism's uncertain future. This provocative and ambitious, yet accessible, perspective on theories of capitalism will be of interest to anyone who wants to explore where we've been and where we're headed. Kristin Plys' research sits at the intersection of political economy, postcolonial theory, labor and labor movements, historical sociology, and global area studies. The greater part of her intellectual work analyzes the historical trajectory of global capitalism as seen from working class and anti-colonial movements in the Global South. This research program has led her to take a particular interest in Marxist political economy, social protest against authoritarianism in the 1970s Global South, avant-garde visual art as left politics in the Global South, labor history and histories of café culture, and historical method. She works in multiple languages including Hindi, Urdu, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Portuguese, and Punjabi. Kristin's first book, Brewing Resistance: Indian Coffee House and the Emergency in Postcolonial India (2020) uncovered histories of the resistance movement that was launched from New Delhi's café culture during India's brief period of dictatorship (1975-77). Her current research in-progress investigates how visual artists, writers, poets, Communists, and Maoists fomented opposition against Pakistan's 1977 military coup through a "cultural front" that innovated new forms of anti-authoritarian writing, painting, and poetry rooted in Lahore's vibrant café culture.