The Capitalist's Imagination

Atlantic ^ | 10 Aug 2016 | Brooke Harington

[rey]

(2nd Paragraph) German sociologist Jens Beckert tackles this problem head-on, making imagination the focus of an extended meditation on the role of the unpredictable future in creating modern capitalism. His new book, Imagined Futures: Fictional Expectations and Capitalist Dynamics, makes a thorough, exhaustively documented argument in support of what many have suspected about capitalism: It's a castle in the air, built on fantasy shading into fraud. He makes a compelling case that no corner of the market is untouched by the process of generating imagined futures. The novelty of his work lies in offering a way to understand that process as a social system in which everyone, from individuals to institutions, is implicated.

[rey]

I find it hard to believe that socialism is reality. Let's all hold hands and sing Kumbaya and all work together for the common good? It is working wonders in Venezuela.

[Darteaus94025]

It’s odd that a German sociologist would write this and not a Cambodian, North Korean, Cuban or Venezuelan sociologist writing about the reality of Socialism.

[tradergem]

Marx and Engles were German.

[TBP]

Progressives want to stifle that imagination to make sure nobody gets ahead.