Corporatism and Comparative Politics: The Other Great "Ism" (Comparative Politics (Armonk, N.Y.).) [Paperback]

Howard J. Wiarda (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 199 pages
• Publisher: M E Sharpe Inc (November 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 156324716X
• ISBN-13: 978-1563247163
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,032,961 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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This review is from: Corporatism and Comparative Politics: The Other Great "Ism" (Comparative Politics (Armonk, N.Y.).) (Paperback)

_Corporatism and Comparative Politics: The Other Great "Ism"_ by social scientist Howard J. Wiarda is an introduction to the political philosophy of corporatism (the other great "ism"). Corporatism is distinct from both liberalism and Marxism and serves as an important framework or model by which to understand certain governments and societies. Corporatism connotes a system in which major societal groups - for example, clan, ethnic, religious, economic, or military groups - are integrated into the governmental system for the purpose of achieving coordinated national development. While corporatism has proven problematic for many, given its role in various oppressive regimes in the earlier half of the twentieth century, it remains a distinct political system.

This book begins by contrasting corporatism to both Marxism and liberalism (pluralism). Under liberalism there is a weak state with strong interest groups independent of the state. Under corporatism there is a strong directing state with structured and limited pluralism of interest groups. Under Marxism, Leninism, or fascism there is a total state with weak, totally controlled interest groups. This spectrum provides a useful guidepost by which to understand the corporatist phenomenon. The author also notes that corporatism has four distinct forms which it may come to take. These are historical or "natural" corporatism, ideological corporatism, manifest corporatism, and modern neo-corporatism. Historical or "natural" corporatism occurs in many premodern societies that are founded on traditions emphasizing solidarity, group identity, and community. These include the ethnic, clan, and tribal basis of African politics, many of the Confucian based societies of East Asia, the group, clan, and caste based societies of South Asia, and those societies based in the tradition involving the Koran. In Western Europe, a corporatist system existed before the onslaught of the Renaissance, the Enlightenment, and the Industrial Revolution which included military orders, guilds, the Roman Catholic Church and its orders, and the aristocracy. With the emphasis on the individual and on individual rights brought about by the Enlightenment and the French Revolution, many came to regret the coming breakup of the old order. This led many conservatives and especially Catholics to create an ideology that they called corporatism based on a radical nostalgia. In the papal encyclicals, _Quadregessimo Anno_ and _Rerum Novarum_ a religious based system of corporatism was outlined. Other forms of corporatism were more secular in nature. Some were authoritarian and others were more democratic. Manifest corporatism involved various regimes including Fascist Italy, Nazi Germany, Vichy France, Franco's Spain, Salazar's Portugal, Metaxas's Greece, Dolfuss's Austria, Vargas's Brazil, and Peron's Argentina in the earlier half of the twentieth century. Many of these regimes were authoritarian and involved severe human rights abuses leading many to perceive corporatism in a highly negative light. Later regimes which came to involve corporatism would reject the corporatist label despite their adherence to this ideology because of the negative connotations that became associated with the word due to the fascist regimes which operated under its principles. Modern neo-corporatism is distinct from these authoritarian regimes and tends to be more democratic and pluralistic in character. Corporatism has proven to be a particularly useful model for understanding various regimes in Latin America, as well as neo-corporatism in Europe. The United States has a long tradition emphasizing individualism and individual initiative making corporatism a shunned phenomenon in the U.S. However, as the author shows the United States is exhibiting a creeping form of corporatism with the rise of F. D. R.'s New Deal and the subsequent welfare state. Many critics remain firmly opposed to corporatism, given the bad name and associations it has been given but also based on ideological reasons of their own. Marxists for example have long regarded corporatism as a right wing phenomenon and a tool of the capitalist class to appease the proletariat. Indeed, Trotsky was once called a "corporatist" by Stalin in an effort to discredit him. Classical liberals such as Margaret Thatcher have been long outstanding opponents of corporatism. While the rise of corporatism in the United States may be troubling for some, it remains a distinct phenomenon of interest.

This book provides an excellent introduction to the ideological phenomenon of corporatism. The author explains many of the key points regarding this particular political form. While corporatism remains distinct from both Marxism and liberalism as a third ideology of modern political and social organization, it is important to understand this phenomenon if one wants to understand many of the political regimes throughout the world.