Stephan Lessenich

Wie wir auf Kosten anderer leben

Neben uns die Sintflut

Gesellschaft am Rande des Nervenzusammenbruchs

Nicht mehr normal

The Hidden Costs of Western Prosperity

Living Well at Others' Expense

Hartmut Rosa

Klaus Dörre

For years, the critique of capitalism was lost from public discourse; the very word "capitalism" sounded like a throwback to another era. Nothing could be further from the truth today. In this new intellectual atmosphere, Sociology, Capitalism, Critique is a contribution to the renewal of critical sociology, founded on an empirically grounded diagnosis of society's ills. The authors, Germany's leading critical sociologists-Klaus Drre, Stephan Lessenich, and Hartmut Rosa-share a conviction that ours is a pivotal period of renewal, in which the collective endeavour of academics can amount to an act of intellectual resistance, working to prevent any regressive development that might return us to neoliberal domination. The authors discuss key issues, such as questions of accumulation and expropriation; discipline and freedom; and the powerful new concepts of activation and acceleration. Their politically committed sociology, which takes the side of the losers in the current crisis, places society's future well-being at the centre of their research. Their collective approach to this project is a conscious effort to avoid co-optation in the institutional practices of the academy. These three differing but complementary perspectives serve as an insightful introduction to the contemporary themes of radical sociology in capitalism's post-crisis phase.

Sociology, Capitalism, Critique

Jens Borchert

Back in 1972, German political sociologist Claus Offe published a book on the Structural Problems of Late Capitalism which, for almost two decades, inspired and stimulated an international and transdisciplinary debate on the role of the state in contemporary capitalism. An academic debate which, paradoxically, began to wane as the issues about which Offe had been writing became even more prominent: the "Contradictions of the Welfare State" (the title of a collection of Offe's main contributions to the debate published in English in 1984) and democratic capitalism's reality of the permanent "crises of crisis management." Since 2008, it has again become a widely shared diagnosis that advanced capitalism is in crisis. However, there is either scholarly disagreement or (more often so) mere perplexity when it comes to understanding this crisis and to explaining the prevalent patterns in dealing with it. In this volume, Jens Borchert and Stephan Lessenich critically combine a reconstruction Claus Offe's approach to state theory with an analysis of the current constellation of democratic capitalism based on that same theory. In doing so, they expertly argue that his relational approach to state theory is much better equipped analytically to grasp the contradictory dynamics of the financial crisis and its political regulation than competing contributions. This is why systematically revisiting the theory of "late capitalism" is not only of a historical concern, but constitutes an essential contribution to a political sociology of our time.

Claus Offe and the Critical Theory of the Capitalist State

Back in 1972, German political sociologist Claus Offe published a book on the Structural Problems of Late Capitalism which, for almost two decades, inspired and stimulated an international and transdisciplinary debate on the role of the state in contemporary capitalism. An academic debate which, paradoxically, began to wane as the issues about which Offe had been writing became even more prominent: the "Contradictions of the Welfare State" (the title of a collection of Offe’s main contributions to the debate published in English in 1984) and democratic capitalism’s reality of the permanent "crises of crisis management". Since 2008, it has again become a widely shared diagnosis that advanced capitalism is in crisis. However, there is either scholarly disagreement or (more often so) mere perplexity when it comes to understanding this crisis and to explaining the prevalent patterns in dealing with it. In this volume, Jens Borchert and Stephan Lessenich critically combine a reconstruction Claus Offe’s approach to state theory with an analysis of the current constellation of democratic capitalism based on that same theory. In doing so, they expertly argue that his relational approach to state theory is much better equipped analytically to grasp the contradictory dynamics of the financial crisis and its political regulation than competing contributions. This is why systematically revisiting the theory of "late capitalism" is not only of a historical concern, but constitutes an essential contribution to a political sociology of our time.

Andreas Aust

Sigrid Leitner

Das vierte "Jahrbuch für Europa- und Nordamerika-Studie" greift die politisch wie wissenschaftlich hochaktuelle Diskussion rund um das "Europäische Sozialmodell" auf. Es versucht zu klären, was darunter konkret zu verstehen ist und wie die Zukunft des "Europäischen Sozialmodells" einzuschätzen ist: Existiert das Modell und wird es überleben?

Konturen eines Phänomens

Sozialmodell Europa

Jenny Preunkert

Thilo Fehmel

Gesellschaftlicher Wandel ergibt sich aus dem Spannungsverhältnis von strukturellen Zwängen und individuellen Handlungsmöglichkeiten. Die moderne Gesellschaft zeichnet sich durch beides aus: eine ungeahnte Ausweitung von Handlungsspielräumen der Menschen bei gleichzeitiger Entstehung immer neuer Anpassungserfordernisse an systemische Notwendigkeiten. Die Autoren beleuchten diese Konstellation aus unterschiedlichen theoretischen Perspektiven und loten vor dem Hintergrund aktueller Krisen die Möglichkeiten für institutionelle Reformen aus. Mit Beiträgen von Maurizio Bach, Gerda Bohmann, Günter Dux, Thilo Fehmel, Bob Jessop, Stephan Lessenich, Sighard Neckel, Jenny Preunkert, Uwe Schimank, Hans-Georg Soeffner und Georg Vobruba.

Theorie und Empirie von Autonomiegewinnen

Systemzwang und Akteurswissen

Der Sozialstaat befindet sich in einer Phase nachhaltiger Umbrüche. Dies ist mittlerweile Allgemeingut. Doch wie dieser Wandel, ja diese" Krise"näher zu bestimmen ist - darüber herrscht alles andere als Klarheit. Die vorherrschenden Diskurse über die Demontage bzw. den" neoliberalen"Rückzug des Sozialstaats greifen zu kurz. Dieses Buch schlägt dagegen vor, den Wandel vom (ver- )sorgenden zum aktivierenden und investiven Sozialstaat als fundamentale Achsenverschiebung im Verhältnis zwischen Individuum und Gesellschaft zu verstehen: als Neuerfindung des Sozialen. Es zeigt die Konturen einer" Aktivgesellschaft", in der Mobilität, Flexibilität und Produktivität zu politischen Steuerungsformeln individuellen Selbstzwangs verkommen. Nicht länger das Wohlergehen der einzelnen Bürger steht im Vordergrund, sondern vielmehr die Wohlfahrt der" gesellschaftlichen Gemeinschaft". Damit wird nicht weniger als das Grundversprechen der Moderne aufgegeben: ein selbstbestimmtes Leben zu führen. Stephan Lessenich ist Professor für Vergleichende Gesellschafts- und Kulturanalyse am Institut für Soziologie der Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena. Seine jüngsten Veröffentlichungen zum Thema des Bandes:" Deutschland - eine gespaltene Gesellschaft", Frankfurt/New York 2006 (Herausgeber gemeinsam mit Frank Nullmeier);" Den Sozialstaat neu denken", Hamburg 2005 (gemeinsam mit Andrea Nahles, Jürgen Peters u.a.);" Wohlfahrtsstaatliche Grundbegriffe. Historische und aktuelle Diskurse", Frankfurt/New York 2003 (Herausgeber) sowie" Dynamischer Immobilismus. Kontinuität und Wandel im deutschen Sozialmodell", Frankfurt/New York 2003.

der Sozialstaat im flexiblen Kapitalismus

Die Neuerfindung des Sozialen

At the heart of developed societies lies an insatiable drive for wealth and prosperity. Yet in a world ruled by free-market economics, there are always winners and losers. The benefits enjoyed by the privileged few come at the expense of the many. In this important new book, Stephan Lessenich shows how our wealth and affluence are built overwhelmingly at the expense of those in less-developed countries and regions of the world. His theory of ‘externalization’ demonstrates how the negative consequences of our lifestyles are directly transferred onto the world’s poorest. From the destruction of habitats caused by the massive increase in demand for soy and palm oil to the catastrophic impact of mining, Lessenich shows how the Global South has borne the brunt of our success. Yet, as we see from the mass movements of people across the world, we can no longer ignore the environmental and social toll of our prosperity. Lessenich’s highly original account of the structure and dynamics of global inequality highlights the devastating consequences of the affluent lifestyles of the West and reminds us of our far-reaching political responsibilities in an increasingly interconnected world.

Three radical perspectives on the critique of capitalism For years, the critique of capitalism was lost from public discourse; the very word “capitalism” sounded like a throwback to another era. Nothing could be further from the truth today. In this new intellectual atmosphere, Sociology, Capitalism, Critique is a contribution to the renewal of critical sociology, founded on an empirically grounded diagnosis of society’s ills. The authors, Germany’s leading critical sociologists—Klaus Dörre, Stephan Lessenich, and Hartmut Rosa—share a conviction that ours is a pivotal period of renewal, in which the collective endeavour of academics can amount to an act of intellectual resistance, working to prevent any regressive development that might return us to neoliberal domination. The authors discuss key issues, such as questions of accumulation and expropriation; discipline and freedom; and the powerful new concepts of activation and acceleration. Their politically committed sociology, which takes the side of the losers in the current crisis, places society’s future well-being at the centre of their research. Their collective approach to this project is a conscious effort to avoid co-optation in the institutional practices of the academy. These three differing but complementary perspectives serve as an insightful introduction to the contemporary themes of radical sociology in capitalism’s post-crisis phase.

Einst gehörte es zu den zentralen Aufgaben der Soziologie, die moderne Gesellschaft über die sozialen Voraussetzungen und Konsequenzen ihrer Krisenhaftigkeit aufzuklären. Diesem heute oft vernachlässigten Anliegen fühlen sich die Autoren dieses Bandes verpflichtet und stellen die Frage nach dem zeitdiagnostischen Potential soziologischer Analyse in den Mittelpunkt einer Debatte. Zeitdiagnostisch fundierte Gesellschaftskritik, so eine ihrer Thesen, gehört zum Kerngeschäft der Soziologie. Eine zweite besagt, daß jede Gesellschaftskritik der Gegenwart notwendig auch Kapitalismuskritik sein muß. Anhand von drei unterschiedlichen, aber komplementären Perspektiven auf aktuelle Prozesse der Landnahme, der Aktivierung und der Beschleunigung wird eine soziologische Kritik der Gegenwartsgesellschaft entfaltet, die zugleich Ansatzpunkte für politisches Handeln aufzeigt.

Stephan Lessenich

Books

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