Transcending Capitalism With Small Yet Radical Steps: Towards a Liberation in the Imaginary

Cömert M.

Historical Materialism 2024, İstanbul, Türkiye, 01 Mart 2024, ss.1, (Özet Bildiri)

  • Yayın Türü: Bildiri / Özet Bildiri
  • Basıldığı Şehir: İstanbul
  • Basıldığı Ülke: Türkiye
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.1
  • Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

Although all aspects of our lives are radically framed by the logic of capitalism, the idea that capitalism cannot survive in its current form continues to receive widespread attention all over the world. Refusing the notorious ‘end of history’, people everywhere are unwilling to see capitalism as the final stage in which humanity triumphs and prospers. Ursula Le Guin’s passionate speech gives hope in a Fukuyamean time when it seems impossible even to imagine a coherent alternative: ‘We live in capitalism, its power seems inescapable—but then, so did the divine right of kings. Any human power can be resisted and changed by human beings’. Translating Ursula’s optimism, the study raises a politically ambitious question: If capitalism is never indestructible, what will replace capitalism and how? At a time when an unshakeable belief persists that any anti-capitalist project, even in the realm of imagination, is doomed to fail, this study remains keenly aware of the phenomenon known as ‘capitalist realism’. However, the study takes the idea of creating cracks in capitalism as its point of departure and insists on seeking answers to big questions. Challenging the notion that capitalist realism is inevitable, we call for the creation, expansion and multiplication of interstitial movements running from the particular to radically change the world. Therefore, we introduce a distinct perspective to construct an alternative project from the struggles of everyday practices. To that end, we focus on the immemorial culture, meci, a practice deeply rooted in solidarity in the Fındıklı district of Rize, Turkey, based on the findings obtained from the fieldwork. We conclude by illustrating the potential for ‘small’ and ‘particular’ changes to revolutionize everyday life.