Millennial Capitalism and the Culture of Neoliberalism

“[R]aises many thought-provoking questions. For instance, what effects , if any, will the creation of a global marketplace have on the traditional concept of the nation-state? This should give rise to lively debates, indeed.” - Wilbur Devereux Jones , Perspectives on Political Science

"[C]ompelling. . . . This collection, though broad, offers theoretical insight into the study of neoliberal globalization, fleshed out with several excellent ethnographic case studies. The insights from this book, particularly the introduction, will surely shape future inquiry by anthropologists, historians, geographers, and others."

- Donna Perry , Journal of Colonialism & Colonial History

"[I]nformative and insightful essays. . . . Each contribution offers an eye-opening analysis—grounded in solid research. . . ."

- Laura Savu , Symploke

"The chapters . . . all share something of the same spirit. It is the spirit, one might say, of someone who has just been dunked on the head and is now wobblingly trying to figure where they are, but I do not mean this as a criticism. It is one of the book's greatest strengths to point out that this is not a feeling limited to left-leaning academics, but that, in fact, most people on earth have been feeling this way recently. This is one of neoliberalims's most significant, and least discussed, effects, and it is one that (if casino capitalism with its 'mathematics of fear' really does become institutionalized) threatens to become permanent." - David Graeber , American Anthropologist

"The collection as a whole is an interesting set of snapshots of the global scene with something for everyone. . . ." - Rohan Bastin, The Australian Journal of Anthropology

“In an extrarodinary introduction the editors of this book set out to interrogate the features of capitalism at the millennium, not only its technical but also its messianic and magical manifestations. This makes for an unusual treatment of familiar subjects. . . . [M]ust reading for anyone concerned with transnational processes.” - Saskia Sassen, author of The Global City

“The savvy success of ‘postmodernism,’ that cynical sign of the fin de siecle, has prevented us from re-imagining the present and mapping the future. Millennial Capitalism and the Culture of Neoliberalism steps into the breach and opens up a new chapter in our understanding of a world of contradictory forces and ambivalent affiliations. When the rapid expansion of free markets sends sovereign states into free fall, and the value of citizenship is measured in the currency of consumption, the time is ripe for a radical rethinking of political passion in the public interest. In a fine double act the Comaroffs, and their gifted contributors, provide us with brilliant ethnographic and ethical accounts of a world-system whose emergent structures are both older and newer than the globalizing jargon of our times.” - Homi K. Bhabha, University of Chicago