Reconstructing Karl Polanyi

An unprecedented analysis of the revered political economist Karl Polyani’s life and work, drawn from newly discovered primary sources.

*Shortlisted for the Deutscher Memorial Prize 2017*

Karl Polanyi's contribution to political economy and social science is immeasurable. In Reconstructing Karl Polanyi, Gareth Dale, foremost scholar and biographer of Polanyi, provides a sweeping survey of his contributions to the social sciences.

An opponent of traditional economics and a believer in economics' contingency to society and culture, Polanyi's work has a cross-disciplinary appeal, finding popularity in anthropology, economic history, economic sociology and political science. Paradoxical formulations, such as 'liberal socialist' and 'cosmopolitan patriot', are often used to describe Polanyi's intellectual and political vision. In exploring these paradoxes, Dale draws upon original writings and transcripts to reconstruct Polanyi's views on a range of topics long neglected in critical literature; including the history of antiquity, the evolution and dynamics of Stalin's Russia, McCarthyism and Polanyi's critical dialogue with Marxism.

Accompanying the reconstruction of his work is Dale's analysis of Polanyi's relevance to current issues, notably the 'clash' between democracy and capitalism, and the nature and trajectory of European unification. This proves an indispensable critical guide to Polanyian thought.

Acknowledgements
Introduction
1. Reconstructing Sociology
2. The Marxist Orbit: Polanyi’s Double Movement
3. Capital versus the Demos
4. Democratic Tyranny: The Soviet Union
5. Reconstructing The Great Transformation
6. Regionalism and the European Union
7. Intellectuals and the Red Scare
8. Redistribution and Market Exchange in Mesopotamia
9. Markets in Ancient Greece: The Challenge of the New Institutionalism (with Matthijs Krul)
Notes
Index