Book Review: ‘You Can Have Any Colour You Like, As Long As It’s Black’: The Discursive Constrains of Capitalism or Why No One Is a Marxist Anymore

Abstract

In 'The End of Capitalism' (as we knew it), J.K Gibson-Graham mounts a sustained critique of the discursive coherence of capitalism. Drawing on diverse strands of feminist and poststructuralist thought, the author encourages us to unpack and examine representations of capitalism and our own assumptions about what it means. We are urged to see, perform and narrate economic difference. In the process, Gibson-Graham presents the reader with an engaging survey of much critical social theory, particularly postmodern Marxism and poststructuralist feminism. After reading this book, we need no longer feel overwhelmed by the prevalent triumphalist representations of capitalism, which is particularly welcome when economic globalisation risks being the descriptor of a generation.