Overview

In this era of economic crisis, social distress, and ecological threats, the term “populism” has come to sum up anxiety about our political future. While it is mostly associated with rightwing demagogues such as Donald Trump, Matteo Salvini and Jair Bolsonaro, various figures of the “post-crash Left”, such as Bernie Sanders, Jeremy Corbyn and Pablo Iglesias have also been branded “populist”, for the way they express that distrust of the elites and belief in ordinary people that have become key motifs of our zeitgeist. Protect and Control suggests that we have entered a post-neoliberal and populist era, in which the populist idiom of sovereignty, protection and control has become hegemonic on both the Left and the Right. Weaving concepts from classics such as Plato, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Gramsci, Polanyi and Schumpeter with commentaries on the words and deeds of contemporary populist leaders, the book argues that populism is successful because it captures widespread anger at the chaos unleashed by globalisation and a popular demand for community and security that is politically ambiguous. Rather, than casting itself as anti-populist, the Left needs to articulate this idiom towards progressive ends, developing a post-global socialism committed to protecting the people and controlling the markets while re-asserting the power of the state.

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9781788730501

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Reviews

With remarkable intellectual reach, Paolo Gerbaudo draws on centuries of political thought to analyse and tackle big questions arising from society's 'recoil' from the failed project that was/is neoliberal globalisation. This is a vital and timely text for a fuller understanding of how the left should react to the pandemic in order to 'build back better.' -Ann Pettifor, author of The Case for The Green New Deal A fascinating journey from neoliberal hegemony, through anti-globalist populist backlash, to the neo-statism of the pandemic world; it is a critical text for progressives seeking to orient themselves in a world marked by both dirigisme and cultural reaction. Gerbaudo rightly argues that a left populism in the post-pandemic world must centre on the deepening of political and economic democracy in order to combat a right-wing politics of domination and control. -Grace Blakeley, author of Stolen In this intriguing book that weaves together the ideas of authors such as Hegel and Polanyi, Paolo Gerbaudo follows the swinging pendulum of global capitalism moving from its expansive form to the inwardness of statism. The global crisis of 2008 and the pandemic have ushered in a great recoil in which Western capitalism looks like a giant pulled down by its own strength, and the return of the interventionist state is viewed as a possible solution to its ills. -Nadia Urbinati, author of Me, the People Counter-movements against neoliberal globalisation have been gathering momentum for a number of years, but are now reaching a critical mass. The Great Recoil provides a definitive account of how the nation state has been revived and transformed, bringing much-needed clarity and critique to the vast political questions of our present moment. -William Davies author of This is Not Normal What will replace neo-liberalism? Will it be a new big state capitalism overseen by a populist political right? In this timely and important book, Paolo Gerbaudo shows how the left can contest the meaning of sovereignty, protection, and control, and put forward its own progressive populism founded on economic and social inclusion, environmental sustainability, and radical republican politics. -Stuart White, Jesus College, Oxford Persuasive ... [Gerbaudo's] historical analysis gives his prescriptions for the left heightened urgency. -Jasmine Liu, Chicago Review of Books Gerbaudo avoids a simplistic account of neoliberalism ... [he] is an astute and rigorous analyst, and The Great Recoil is perhaps the most thorough yet compact synthesis of the crises and challenges that have reset the parameters for state action in the twenty-first century. -Justin H. Vassallo, Baffler

With remarkable intellectual reach, Paolo Gerbaudo draws on centuries of political thought to analyse and tackle big questions arising from society's 'recoil' from the failed project that was/is neoliberal globalisation. This is a vital and timely text for a fuller understanding of how the left should react to the pandemic in order to 'build back better.' -Ann Pettifor, author of The Case for The Green New Deal A fascinating journey from neoliberal hegemony, through anti-globalist populist backlash, to the neo-statism of the pandemic world; it is a critical text for progressives seeking to orient themselves in a world marked by both dirigisme and cultural reaction. Gerbaudo rightly argues that a left populism in the post-pandemic world must centre on the deepening of political and economic democracy in order to combat a right-wing politics of domination and control. -Grace Blakeley, author of Stolen In this intriguing book that weaves together the ideas of authors such as Hegel and Polanyi, Paolo Gerbaudo follows the swinging pendulum of global capitalism moving from its expansive form to the inwardness of statism. The global crisis of 2008 and the pandemic have ushered in a great recoil in which Western capitalism looks like a giant pulled down by its own strength, and the return of the interventionist state is viewed as a possible solution to its ills. -Nadia Urbinati, author of Me, the People Counter-movements against neoliberal globalisation have been gathering momentum for a number of years, but are now reaching a critical mass. The Great Recoil provides a definitive account of how the nation state has been revived and transformed, bringing much-needed clarity and critique to the vast political questions of our present moment. -William Davies author of This is Not Normal What will replace neo-liberalism? Will it be a new big state capitalism overseen by a populist political right? In this timely and important book, Paolo Gerbaudo shows how the left can contest the meaning of sovereignty, protection, and control, and put forward its own progressive populism founded on economic and social inclusion, environmental sustainability, and radical republican politics. -Stuart White, Jesus College, Oxford

With remarkable intellectual reach, Paolo Gerbaudo draws on centuries of political thought to analyse and tackle big questions arising from society's 'recoil' from the failed project that was/is neoliberal globalisation. This is a vital and timely text for a fuller understanding of how the left should react to the pandemic in order to 'build back better.' --Ann Pettifor, author of The Case for The Green New Deal A fascinating journey from neoliberal hegemony, through anti-globalist populist backlash, to the neo-statism of the pandemic world; it is a critical text for progressives seeking to orient themselves in a world marked by both dirigisme and cultural reaction. Gerbaudo rightly argues that a left populism in the post-pandemic world must centre on the deepening of political and economic democracy in order to combat a right-wing politics of domination and control. --Grace Blakeley, author of Stolen In this intriguing book that weaves together the ideas of authors such as Hegel and Polanyi, Paolo Gerbaudo follows the swinging pendulum of global capitalism moving from its expansive form to the inwardness of statism. The global crisis of 2008 and the pandemic have ushered in a great recoil in which Western capitalism looks like a giant pulled down by its own strength, and the return of the interventionist state is viewed as a possible solution to its ills. --Nadia Urbanati, author of Me, the People Counter-movements against neoliberal globalisation have been gathering momentum for a number of years, but are now reaching a critical mass. The Great Recoil provides a definitive account of how the nation state has been revived and transformed, bringing much-needed clarity and critique to the vast political questions of our present moment. --William Davies author of This is Not Normal What will replace neo-liberalism? Will it be a new big state capitalism overseen by a populist political right? In this timely and important book, Paolo Gerbaudo shows how the left can contest the meaning of sovereignty, protection, and control, and put forward its own progressive populism founded on economic and social inclusion, environmental sustainability, and radical republican politics. --Stuart White, Jesus College, Oxford

Author Information

Paolo Gerbaudo is a sociologist and political theorist based at King’s College London where he acts as Director of the Centre for Digital Culture. He is the author of Tweets and the Streets, The Mask and the Flag and The Digital Party. He has written for The New Statesman, The Guardian, and others.

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