Mark Fisher: 'Capitalist Realism - Is There No Alternative?'

Despite my best intentions, it seems I’ve found myself becoming a little more politically conscious again after years of trying to disregard the whole sorry charade.  Recent years have seen such momentous economic upheavals and political dysfunction that it seems impossible to retain that particular intellectual luxury.

In this context, and whilst, still hoping to maintain a position of ideological non-alignment, I’ve just read with interest Mark Fisher’s little book, ‘Capitalist Realism, Is There No Alternative?’ [1.].

The failure of the discredited old Left world-view resulted in the illusion, over recent decades, of the ‘end of history’ [2.] and the ‘triumph’ of liberal market economics.  Yet, daily news reports and the experience of people on the ground bring accumulating evidence of the defects and delusions of that prevailing orthodoxy.  By now, the inherent indifference of Global Capital to the wellbeing of the general populace should be no surprise.  Yet our leaders continue in their desperate attempts to prop up the creaking edifices of nationally based economies, Liberal Democracy and the myth of no imaginable alternative to the status quo.

Over just eighty readable pages, Fisher diagnoses our current situation of ‘Reflexive Impotence’ [3.] incisively.  His genius is to tackle this stuff with genuine intellectual rigour without lapsing into the academic self-regard and impenetrable jargon typical of such discussions and he skilfully links his ideas to cultural references that range from Franz Kafka to ‘Supernanny’.  The scope of his analysis in such a short book is somewhat miraculous and includes ideas about education, mental health and the environment that relate his theories to the real experience of potential readers.

Photo:  Umair Shuaib

Fisher writes from an undeniable left wing position, but his refusal to resort to the old orthodoxies of monolithic state control is admirable.  His analysis of how Capitalism nullifies our lives risks inspiring despair, but the conclusion that there might, after all, be an alternative should at least inspire attempts to look for it.  His own practical suggestions may feel a little thin, but if the book only serves to release readers from their apathy, impotence or hypnotic stasis it will have served a valuable purpose.

Anyone interested in Mark Fisher’s ideas should check out his k-punk blog.  Despite it’s current dormancy, his archives are full of thought provoking stuff.  He is also a teacher and freelance journalist who has written for New Statesman, Frieze, The Wire, Sight & Sound and FACT.

[1.] & [3.]:  ‘Mark Fisher, Capitalist Realism – Is There No Alternative?’, Ropley, Hants, UK, 
0 Books, 2009, Chapter 4: ‘Reflexive Impotence, Immobilization and Liberal Communism’.

[2.]:  Francis Fukyama, ‘The End Of History And The Last Man’, New York, Free Press, 1992