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Education: A ghost story Capitalism: A Ghost Story by Arundhati Roy. ISBN: 978-1608464-385-5 (pb), 125 pp., Haymarket Books, 2014. Reviewed by Thomas Klikauer
After The God of Small Things and winning the Man
than twenty Indian rupees a day’.Arundahti Roy’s ‘making
Booker Prize (1997) and the Sydney Peace Prize (2004),
way for us’ indicates valid self-criticism because he
Haymarket Books has published Arundahti Roy’s latest
belongs to the 300 million middle-class that ‘buys things
book Capitalism: a Ghost Story. This work is on a par
it doesn’t need with money it doesn’t have to impress
with Michael Moore’s Capitalism: a Love Story (2009),
people most don’t even like’. All this is engineered under
Achbar & Abbott’s The Corporation: The Pathological
the hallucinogenic and ideological self-deception of ‘one
Pursuit of Profit and Power (2003), Benson & Kirsch’s
plasma-screen makes you happy – two plasma-screens
seminal article on ‘Capitalism and the Politics of
make you twice as happy’.
Resignation’ (2010), Freyenhagen’s illuminating critique
Elsewhere as in India the petit-bourgeois middle class
of capitalism (on: ‘Adorno’s practical philosophy’ 2013 p.
has also been hit by the twin ideologies of managerialism
26-52), John Pilger’s A Secret Country (2010), Klein’s This
(Klikauer, 2013) and neoliberalism when ‘after twenty-
Changes Everything (2014) and probably most of what
years of growth, 60 per cent of India’s workforce is self-
Noam Chomsky wrote during the last ten or so years.
employed, and 90 per cent of India’s labour force works
Arundahti Roy’s book also explains the background to
in the unorganised sector’. The global casualisation of
the recent visit to Australia of Indian Prime Minister, the
the workforce marches on increasingly unhindered
BJP party’s Narendra Modi (www.theguardian.com 17th
by disturbances such as those of trade unions, social
Nov. 2014). It also explains the role of The BJP party and
movements, and radical political parties set against
the government of India and gives some pretty clear
von Hayek’s political catechism of neoliberalism, as
indication how the affluence and opulence of some
well as managerialism. When scanning publications for
exists in the face of massive poverty by others. The steel
‘managerialism’ one gets the distinct impression that
magnate Lakshmi Mittal’s niece’s wedding reportedly
universities are areas of prime infestation. Meanwhile
‘cost
million’ (www.forbes.com, 12/17/2013).
protest against neoliberalism is framed as a form of
Meanwhile, the World Food Programme (wfp.org/
madness just as Marcuse had outlined so brilliantly in his
countries/india) reports ‘the country is home to a
The One-Dimensional Society (1966).
$82
quarter of all undernourished people worldwide’. While
Meanwhile in India, one of the government’s fights
Roy’s book explains what is done so that the rich stay
against a most prevalent anti-government protest is framed
rich and the poor stay poor, it also makes an insightful
as ‘operation green hunt’ designed ‘to flush the rebels out
contribution to education under capitalism ideologically
of the forest … in India we don’t call this war. We call
flanked by neoliberalism and capitalism.
it ‘Creating a Good Investment Climate’ [and for that the
To undertake this, Arundahti Roy’s starts with a short
state gave] the army legal impunity and the right to kill
discussion of the 2010 Commonwealth Games held
on suspicion’. To some, this might carry connotations to
in India on which Arundahti Roy notes, ‘in the drive to
a police state or military dictatorship – something rather
beautify Delhi for the Commonwealth Games, laws were
unexpected for a country that prides itself to be ‘the
passed making the poor vanish like laundry stains…
world’s greatest democracy’. But in the wake of keeping
the slums that remained were screened off, with vinyl
the poor in their place, ‘recently, Soni Sori, an Adivasi
billboards that said ‘DELHIciously Yours’ … the games were
schoolteacher from Bastar, was arrested and tortured in
a success’. But ‘the ghost story’ really begins with India’s
police custody’. The gruesome details are in Roy’s book.
300 million strong middle-class flanked by ‘the ghosts of
In the end ‘Soni Sori remains in jail, while Ankit Garg,
250,000 debt-ridden farmers who have killed themselves,
the superintendent of the police who conducted the
and of the 800 million who have been impoverished and
interrogation, was conferred the President’s Police Medal
dispossessed to make way for us, and who survive on less
for Gallantry on Republic Day’, perhaps under the motto:
vol. 57, no. 1, 2015
Education: A ghost story Reviewed by Thomas Klikauer
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