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Political Hegemony and Social Complexity

Mechanisms of Power After Gramsci

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  • © 2020

Overview

Authors:
  1. Alex Williams

    1. School of Politics, Philosophy, Language and Communication Studies, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK

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  • First book to integrate complexity theory with the theorisation and practice of hegemony
  • Deploys new theoretical resources to rethink the persistence of neoliberalism since 2008
  • Provides a detailed and original reading of Gramsci, synthesising recent scholarship to demonstrate the absolute modernity of his core ideas

Part of the book series: International Political Theory (IPoT)

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Table of contents (11 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xi
    Download chapter PDF

  2. Introduction

    • Alex Williams
    Pages 1-13

  3. Complexity from the Sciences to Social Systems

    • Alex Williams
    Pages 15-38

  4. Emergence and the Reality of Social Structure

    • Alex Williams
    Pages 39-51

  5. Complexity & Political Dynamics

    • Alex Williams
    Pages 53-67

  6. Ideologies of Self-Organisation

    • Alex Williams
    Pages 69-86

  7. Gramscian Hegemony

    • Alex Williams
    Pages 87-112

  8. Post-Structuralist Hegemony

    • Alex Williams
    Pages 113-134

  9. Theorising Complex Hegemony

    • Alex Williams
    Pages 135-160

  10. The Politics of Complex Hegemony

    • Alex Williams
    Pages 161-193

  11. The Complex Hegemony of Neoliberalism

    • Alex Williams
    Pages 195-232

  12. Conclusion

    • Alex Williams
    Pages 233-248

  13. Back Matter

    Pages 249-252
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Keywords

About this book

How can we understand power in a world of ever-growing complexity? This book proposes that we can do so by rethinking the theory and practice of political hegemony through the resources of complexity theory. Taking Gramsci’s understanding of hegemony as its starting point, the book argues that the intricacies of contemporary power can be mapped by applying concepts drawn from complexity theory, such as emergence, self-organisation, metastability, and generative entrenchment. It develops an original account of social complexity, drawing upon critical realist sociology, analytic philosophy of science, Marxist and continental philosophies, and neoliberal and anarchist thought. It then draws out the elements of Gramscian hegemony that already align with complexity concepts, such as the balance of forces, common sense, and the historic bloc. On this basis, the book sets out the different dimensions of complex hegemonic power before using this theory to interpret the nature of the power of neoliberalism since 2008.

Reviews

“This is an excellent introduction to the politics of hegemony in an age of complexity. It provides useful insights into both theories by bringing them into critical relation to one another in a novel way. The book makes a strong contribution to the fields of politics and social theory.” (Jonathan Joseph, Professor of Politics and International Relations, University of Bristol, UK)

“Hegemony remains an essential concept, without which we cannot make rational sense of political, cultural or social change and stability. Implicitly or explicitly, understandings of hegemony since Gramsci have always been informed by the attempt to map social complexity, and to intervene in it. But no prior work has tackled this subject so directly, or with such clarity and rigour. This book constitutes a remarkably significant contribution to social and political theory, while offering a unique an invaluable perspective on our times.” (Jeremy Gilbert, Professor of Cultural and Political Theory, University of East London, UK)

Authors and Affiliations

  • School of Politics, Philosophy, Language and Communication Studies, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK

    Alex Williams

About the author

Alex Williams is a lecturer in the School of Politics, Philosophy, Language and Communication Studies at the University of East Anglia, UK. His work focuses on power, technology, and strategy. He is the co-author of Inventing the Future (with N. Srnicek, 2015) and Hegemony Now (with J. Gilbert, forthcoming).

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: Political Hegemony and Social Complexity

  • Book Subtitle: Mechanisms of Power After Gramsci

  • Authors: Alex Williams

  • Series Title: International Political Theory

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-19795-7

  • Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan Cham

  • eBook Packages: Political Science and International Studies, Political Science and International Studies (R0)

  • Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG, part of Springer Nature 2020

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-030-19794-0Published: 13 June 2019

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-3-030-19797-1Published: 15 August 2020

  • eBook ISBN: 978-3-030-19795-7Published: 30 May 2019

  • Series ISSN: 2662-6039

  • Series E-ISSN: 2662-6047

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: XI, 252

  • Number of Illustrations: 7 b/w illustrations

  • Topics: Political Theory, Political Sociology, Globalization, Democracy

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