NR Book Review: The Death of the Left - Why we must begin from the beginning again by Steve Hall and Simon Winlow

Everyone on the left should read this book, then read it again until they deconstruct their assumptions that blight the left. Professors Steve Hall and Simon Winlow have written a profound critique of the contemporary left, launching a devastating attack on the postmodern and identitarian 'left' showcasing highlighting its corrosive effects on solidarity.

The identitarian left abandoned egalitarianism, favouring the creation of a hierarchy of suffering instead. Postmodernism undermines scientific objective knowledge and our identities through deconstruction, akin to Descartes' demon reimagined for the 21st century. It is a destructive philosophy. Oppenheimer's famous quotation of the Bhagavad Gita aptly describes postmodernism:

‘Now I am become Death, the Destroyer of Worlds’

The far-right have benefited from the divisive and mordant concerns of postmodern-inspired identity politics.

The prime criticism, though, is the abandonment of political economy. The New Left of Herbert Marcuse shifted focus from material conditions to culture. Even when material aspects were discussed, it was through the lens of semiotics, in which signs and symbols supposedly denote its cultural implications. Otherwise, the left merely adopts economic policies that cement the current neoliberal consensus throughout the Western world. This is most apparent with New Labour and all the traditional social democratic parties throughout Europe.

Even more radical strains of the left have compromised with the neoliberal consensus. The most blatant example is Syriza in Greece, which prioritised staying in the Eurozone and accepting crippling austerity measures imposed by the Eurozone constituent states instead of prioritising a new political economy in Greece addressing the fundamental issues facing the nation. This includes have no monetary sovereignty, so that it could devalue its currency making its burdens more manageable.

Professors Hall and Winlow also do a fantastic job explaining the cultural conservative sensibilities of the working classes. The socially progressive left ignore or demonise the social attitudes of the working classes. This drives them towards the populist right, evidenced by the rise of UKIP in working class towns during European elections, the decline in support of Labour in its heartlands especially as seen in 2019, the vote for Brexit, and the support for Donald Trump among typical blue-collar Democrat voters.

The authors distinguish between advocacy for the working classes and advocacy for socialism. The working classes are not necessarily socialists and have a diverse range of beliefs. They typically vote for socialist parties because they best espouse the interests of the working classes, but that needn't always be the case. The 2019 election vote explemifies this point. Jeremy Corbyn's Labour espoused socialist policies, yet Corbyn himself was an anathema to the working classes. They voted for the party that would best deliver what they voted for in the 2016 referendum - Boris Johnson's Conservatives. The Red Wall crumbled.

Both authors advocate a new political economy based on Modern Monetary Theory (MMT), which posits that government spending precedes taxation, and underfunding for public services and investment occurs because of a lack of political will, not poor state finances. Contrary to the talk of there being no magic money tree, there was one during the 2008 financial crisis; quantitive easing which inflated financial assets in the hope of increasing the number of available assets ready for trading in the financial markets; and, finally, the furlough scheme during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Finally, they conclude that the post-war consensus collapsed because governments did not expand the supply of money during the external shock of the oil crisis, so more goods and assets could be produced. The knock-on effect was stagflation, in which the economy stagnated through insufficient aggregate demand due to not expanding the money supply, and inflation. Neoliberal ideologues also did a great job espousing propaganda undermining the viability of Keynesian economics.

Overall, the book offers a comprehensive account of the flaws of the left ranging from abandoning political economy altogether to the critique of identitarianism.

Nevertheless, I must address the conflict between individualism and collectivism. The authors identify socialism as a collectivistic philosophy, which is problematic. Collectivism has little appeal in the Anglo-Saxon world and often descends into barbaric authoritarianism, even totalitarianism.

The best way of looking at socialism is that it espouses both collectivism and individualism at the same time. Contradictory? Yes. Does it matter? No. Politics isn't the art of doing what's consistent. It's about bringing realistic possibilia into actuality. Results, in other words. The socialist should balance collectivism and individualism as the Chinese philosopher strategist Sūnzǐ balanced yin and yang. This should not be confused with advocacy for communitarianism, a worthy ideal which forms a tripartite with collectivism and individualism. Communitarianism is the synthesis of the two, whereas I'm advocating manipulating polar opposite forces, emphasising a balance between them while realising both are correct.

The skilled socialist strategist will do a great job of upholding the core fundamental principles on individualism and selling that individualism to the Anglo-Saxon world, while embracing the communitarianism and collectivism required for treating the working class as unified political force of strength in the future socialist polity and the importance of community. As argued in Prolegomena for Scientific Mutualism and Meta-socialism - socialism as a philosophy involves the rigorous application of the principle of egalitarianism to the social, political, and economic realm. Collectivism, communitarianism, and individualism are mere tools in realising the application of that principle. Socialists are visionary pragmatists both politically and epistemically.

In conclusion, leftists should read this book and heed the sentiment of the authors:

The only hope to save this great and still vital tradition is for a new generation to arise and take on the task of building something beautiful where the left once stood. [p.315, Kindle]

The New Realist's aim is precisely that.

Steve Hall and Simon Winlow. The Death of the Left - Why we must begin from the beginning again. 2022. Policy Press. Kindle Edition. £12.99 (RRP at time of review).

This book review was originally published on the 12/6/2024. Other than references to the Prolegomena for Scientific Mutualism and Meta-socialism there are no alterations to the article.