First as Tragedy, Then as Farce summary

Conventional wisdom states that free trade and open markets – both of which are essential tenets of capitalism – are the basis for freedom and democracy. But is this really the case? As you’ll soon find out, not really.

In the capitalist society we live in, many of the freedoms and rights we enjoy are portrayed as a result of capitalism, when they are in fact the result of revolutionary politics.

Despite offering some hopeful prospects, the freedoms we’ve achieved in spite of capitalism have failed to establish an equal society.

Capitalism has reached a new stage that has less clearly defined hierarchical structures than in the past. Since the 1970s, capitalism has turned away from an organizational structure whereby the boss at the top controlled everything below. Instead, modern-day labor is organized into teams and projects, which at first glance appear to constitute a more egalitarian and equal distribution of power.

What if the conflicts around the world actually weren’t the real conflicts at the root of global problems?

In capitalism, we latch onto ideological fetishes that hide the harsh truths behind other ideas. In modern usage, the word fetish evokes thoughts of bizarre sexual activities. The older meaning of the word, however, is simply “an object that has been given a greater value or quality.” For example, when someone’s grandmother dies, they might keep an object that is somehow connected with the deceased, like a book or a piece of jewelry, through which their grandmother can “live on.”

What motivates you to buy one brand of, say, toothpaste over another? While it may be the material or economic benefit that one brand has over the other, in all likelihood the reality is far more complicated.

Consumption has shifted from a symbol of culture, experiences and identity to actually being an experience in itself. In other words, the act of buying and choosing what to buy is the real experience; the usage of the product is secondary.

What comes to mind when you hear the word “communism”? For most people, the word conjures up atrocities committed by Joseph Stalin or other communist leaders. But could there ever be a viable communist alternative to the capitalist system?

If this is to be the case, as the author believes, communism must be re-thought from the ground up in order to lay the foundation for collective action.

So which problems in our capitalist world act as antagonisms – essential battlegrounds and arenas for resistance – that communism is best positioned to respond to?

The first three antagonisms in today’s world center around our survival. They all involve the shared resources, or commons, of our societies

While the previous three antagonisms focus on the survival of the human race, the fourth is the division between the Included and the Excluded. It is this antagonism that is most crucial, and also the one that requires a radically new way of thinking.

The Excluded comprises all those who don’t have a place in the social order and are thus excluded from decision making. This group forms a “part of no-part”: their place is exactly that they have no place in the public sphere of debate.

Many people dismiss communism as something that belongs in the dustbin of history. After all, hasn’t it already been proven not to work? On the contrary! In fact, no truly communistic society has ever existed.

The failure of the USSR, often touted as the final nail in the coffin proving the inadequacy of communism, was actually a result of socialism, not communism. In a socialist society, the commons are owned by the state, and within the socialist state people are assigned a role in the community. We call this communitarianism.