F. Von Hayek: Invention of the Enemy and Modern Neoliberalism

Abstract

The paper considers the evolution of the category “political” in the development of economic theory of the XVIII – XX centuries. It demonstrates the departure of economic science from ideological assessments characteristic for the antagonistic relations of early capitalism. In the 1940s – 1950s F. von Hayek reintroduces the concept of “enemy” into economic researches, which is met with strong rejection by the Western establishment, which is under the influence of Keynesianism. F. von Hayek is one of the founders of neoliberalism, within the framework of which an antagonistic confrontation between the “blind forces of the market” and the “dictatorship of a group of people” is being constructed. Thus, a dilemma is imposed, which does not provide an opportunity to understand the mechanisms of market design. Von Hayek is making great efforts to create a transatlantic network of neoliberal organizations based on the Mont Pelerin Society. Long work leads to the fact that in the 1970s. neoliberalism is becoming the ideology - hegemon. At present, the political category retains its significance in economic science. Ideological constructs such as human capital, private money, diffused knowledge, despite their utopianism, continue to transform reality