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Culture and Politics of Crisis V: Europe: Economic Crisis and Political Alternatives

with Mark Blyth & Michael Roberts

Wednesday, 21st of June 2017, 6 pm

tranzit. ro/ Cluj
Str. Brassai Samuel, nr. 5

Where is Europe going and what can be done about its economic malaise? The final instalment of our series of lectures ‘Culture and Politics of Crisis’ focuses on the current European political and economic deadlock. As such, it sets the stage for a dialogue between two of the most important political economists of our time: Mark Blyth and Michael Roberts. For Roberts, the European crisis is diagnosed from a Marxist perspective. For Blyth, the analysis is infused by heterodox Keynesian views. Consequently, the two scholars diverge both in terms of situating the main cause of crisis and the main solution to it: for Roberts the emphasis falls on the general fall of the rate of profit affecting capital in our time, with anti-capitalism as the solution. For Blyth the crisis is caused by a lack of demand and investment and the way out is a different kind of capitalism. Between these diverging diagnostics and challenging solutions affecting the global and continental predicament, the fate of the East of Europe will also come in the spotlight: what are the limits of the semi-peripheral condition of this region and what remedies does it permit – Lexit, national sovereignty, regionalism à la Visegrad? Is a reformed, more social and egalitarian EU possible? Or, if not, how – or even why? – should we stop its nationalist disintegration?

Mark Blyth teaches at Brown University, and is the author of Great Transformations. Economic Ideas and Institutional Change in the 20th Century (2002) and Austerity. The History of a Dangerous Idea (2015).

Michael Roberts is a Marxist economist living in London, author of The Great Recession (2009) and The Long Depression (2016).

Moderators:
Cornel Ban (Boston University, author of How Global Neoliberalism Goes Local (2016))
Alex Cistelecan (Petru Maior University, CriticAtac)

The lecture will be held in English.

Culture and Politics of Crisis is part of Fiction, Rhetorics, Facts program developed by tranzit. ro since 2012.

The main partner of tranzit. ro is ERSTE Foundation.

Media partners: CriticAtac, Vatra.

More info:
Attila Tordai-S.
attila.tordai@tranzit.org
0745182672