Capitalism and Civil Society Revisited or: Conceptualizing a Civil, Sustainable and Solidary Economy

Frank Adloff

doi:10.1007/s10767-020-09373-5

Abstract

After a brief reconstruction of the discourse on civil society, the notion that civil society and the economy are two separate spheres is criticized. Economies are not only embedded in civil society; they can also be organized according to civil society principles. This is discussed conceptually on the one hand, while on the other, the degrowth movement and cooperatives are used as examples to show what a civil, sustainable and solidary economy may look like. It will be shown that the concept of civil society is indispensable for the understanding of modern societies in general and also for economic processes. If one overcomes the sector-specific understanding of civil society and the identification of economy with profit-oriented capitalism on the basis of private property, a variety of connecting lines can be observed. Civic practices can also be identified in the economy and offer a reform approach that is largely overlooked and underestimated in social scientific and political debates. Many experiments on the entanglement of business and civil society are underway, and it is necessary to explore how these spaces can be created and expanded.

Highlights

Western societies are currently faced with a constellation of crises whose exact contours and backgrounds we are only beginning to comprehend
It should be noted that the concept of civil society is indispensable for the understanding of modern societies in general and for economic processes
What is needed is an open conception of civil society, one that is aware of today’s pluralism of civic practices

Summary

Introduction

Western societies are currently faced with a constellation of crises whose exact contours and backgrounds we are only beginning to comprehend. The approaches of Tocqueville (2000), Gramsci, Habermas, and Putnam all localize civil society in a certain sphere of action formed by clubs and associations This definition still prevails in current debates over civil society, which is usually understood as constituting an independent sphere of society that can be distinguished from the family, the state, and the economy (cf Adloff and Kocka 2016). The sector model of civil society, which has dominated research for some twenty years, has been challenged, e.g., by Lichterman and Eliasoph (2014) For these authors, it no longer seems desirable to measure civil society as a space with (supposedly) clear-cut borders—for instance, by collecting data on volunteer work, the social capital of certain demographic groups, or public funding of clubs and associations. It appears to be an empirical question as to whether a civil society sector can be distinguished from other spheres of action—and to what extent forms of civic action exist in all these spheres

Civic Voice and Exit in the Economy

Conclusion