Defetishized Society

Chris Wyatt is lecturer in Social Theory and Sociology at the University of Brighton, UK. He is also affiliated to the University of Sussex, where he teaches Modern Political Thought and Contemporary Political Theory. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology, a Master of Arts degree in Social and Political Thought and a Ph.D. in Social and Political Thought. He is the author of The Difference Principle Beyond Rawls (Continuum, 2008).

• IntroductionSection I. Commodity Fetishism, Anti-fetishism and New Economic Democracy1. The Fetish Character of the Commodity Form and Defetishisation2. Radical Political Economy and the Constitution of New Economic DemocracySection II. Defetishisation in the Economy of New Economic Democracy3. Superseding Alienation4. Towards a New Economic Democracy Critique of Oligarchy5. The Theories of Transaction Costs and Membership Lethargy6. The Theory of Elite Control7. ConclusionBibliographyIndex

"Wyatt's book is topical and important. Well-informed and clearly written, it describes a radical economic and political alternative to the the sorry present disorder. He draws on G. D. H. Cole's libertarian socialism, Rawls's work on the equitable distribution of resources, and Marx's ideas on commodity fetishism. The resulting synthesis provides provides a powerful argument for a New Economic Democracy which would provide an alternative cooperative mode of production and. equally important, a corresponding mode of consumption. If enough people read this book, and act on it, there is hope for us yet." - David Mclellan, Professor of Political Theory, Goldsmiths College, University of London, UK.