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Florian Schui

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Austerity: The Great Failure Hardcover – March 25, 2014

by Florian Schui (Author)

3.8 10 ratings

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In times of economic crisis austerity becomes a rallying cry, but what does history tell us about its chances for success?

Austerity is at the center of political debates today. Its defenders praise it as a panacea that will prepare the ground for future growth and stability. Critics insist it will precipitate a vicious cycle of economic decline, possibly leading to political collapse. But the notion that abstinence from consumption brings benefits to states, societies, or individuals is hardly new. This book puts the debates of our own day in perspective by exploring the long history of austerity—a popular idea that lives on despite a track record of dismal failure.

Florian Schui shows that arguments in favor of austerity were—and are today—mainly based on moral and political considerations, rather than on economic analysis. Unexpectedly, it is the critics of austerity who have framed their arguments in the language of economics. Schui finds that austerity has failed intellectually and in economic terms every time it has been attempted. He examines thinkers who have influenced our ideas about abstinence from Aristotle through such modern economic thinkers as Smith, Marx, Veblen, Weber, Hayek, and Keynes, as well as the motives behind specific twentieth-century austerity efforts. The persistence of the concept cannot be explained from an economic perspective, Schui concludes, but only from the persuasive appeal of the moral and political ideas linked to it.

Review

“[I]t is an entertaining read and teaches us a lot about the difficulties of escaping one’s history even after a good few thousand years have passed.”—Vicky Pryce, The Independent -- Vicky Pryce ― The Independent Published On: 2014-02-22

“As Florian Schui, an economic historian at the University of St Gallen in Switzerland, points out his elegantly written polemic, the word austerity derives from an ancient Greek term for ‘dryness of tongue’. . .Mr Schui’s book is a timely reminder of the moral confusion that swirls around the austerity debate”—The Economist ― The Economist Published On: 2014-03-01

About the Author

Florian Schui is an economic historian at the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland.

Print length

232 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Yale University Press
Publication date

March 25, 2014
Dimensions

5.75 x 1 x 8.75 inches
ISBN-10

0300203934
ISBN-13

978-0300203936
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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Yale University Press (March 25, 2014)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 232 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0300203934
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0300203936
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 15.8 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.75 x 1 x 8.75 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #7,169,484 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #7,013 in Theory of Economics
- #7,499 in Political Economy
- #11,916 in Economic History (Books)

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3.8 10 ratings

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3.8 out of 5

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Sprocket

Master this call to wisdom

Reviewed in the United States on July 17, 2014

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I wish the current crop of Australian faux leaders and self-proclaimed economic and financial gurus had the brains to master this call to wisdom.

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morris altman

Four Stars

Reviewed in the United States on December 10, 2017

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Very good summary of the Austerity narrative in historical context.

Reviewed in the United States on May 24, 2018

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A favorite book. Very timely.

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Interested In Language

Worthwhile purchase

Reviewed in the United States on May 12, 2015

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Good service and good merchandise

Reviewed in the United States on May 5, 2015

Many people talk about austerity and might have a vague understanding about what it means, whether practically or theoretically, yet do they really understand the finer points of what it involves and how it came about? Maybe this book will fill in the missing details.

On the face of it, austerity is good. It is saving something isn’t it? It is cutting down on waste, tightening our belts and seeking to manage on more meagre, austere resources. Others say it is destructive, leading to a vicious cycle of economic decline. Maybe the “right level” of austerity is neither too little and neither too much. The author takes a considerate, historical tour around all matters austerity, arguing that many austerity advocates have taken their position primarily on moral and political grounds instead of troubling themselves with purely economic matters. Does austerity work in the long term? The author doesn’t appear to be overly confident of this, arguing that austerity has failed intellectually and in economic terms every time it has been attempted.

Make no mistake! This is not a thinly veiled piece of political dogma that is seeking to open the spending floodgates within the public sector. It is not a manifesto for change either. It provides a fairly neutral, interesting historical overview of the “austerity experiment” to date. It might transform your current-day thinking or it may reinforce it, but irrespective of that this book will provide an additional level of interesting knowledge to surely every reader.

This was a great book, whether as a primer for academic study, an interesting bedside companion or something to while away a few hours on the beach for those who don’t care for light-read fiction. Politicians and union leaders alike should be sent a copy…

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