Neoliberal hegemony and the task for critical education

Maisuria, Alpesh

Abstract

The starting point for this article is an explication of the essence of Marxism, which is argued as the most efficacious theoretical framework for understanding the current historical conjuncture. I then provide a description of the development of capitalism into its current neoliberal form and its core features. Doing this work is important because while scholars regularly refer to capitalism/neoliberalism, they rarely explicate its fundamentals. Having this specification of neoliberalism will provide a referent for the more sophisticated analysis in the article, which elaborates on the concepts of mystification and feasibility. The discussion revolves around the general question: what mechanisms generate the tendency for most people to acquiesce (or even assent) to neoliberalism, despite the recognition that neoliberalism seems to be creating an environment where flourishing is not possible for the many? To address this question, I suggest the critical importance of the concept of mystification, particularly of inequality and inequity; and also, the concept of feasibility, which relates to the need for neoliberalism to generate a mass and general consciousness of an impossibility of alternative to itself. Counterposing this, I draw the article to a close by presenting a discussion about the need for critical educators to work for generating a consciousness of the feasibility of an alternative to neoliberalism to emerge.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jun 1, 2020
• Online Publication Date: May 1, 2020
• Publication Date: May 1, 2020
• Deposit Date: Aug 3, 2020
• Publicly Available Date: Aug 25, 2020
• Journal: Rethinking Critical Pedagogy
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 1
• Issue: 1
• Keywords: Neoliberalism, Marxism, Marx, Social Class, Revolution
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/6004581
• Publisher URL: http://mjura41.net/rethinking-critical-pedagogy-rcp/
• Additional Information: This was a commissioned article.; http://mjura41.net/rethinking-critical-pedagogy-rcp/