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The Life and Work of Karl Polanyi

Edited by Kari Polanyi-Levitt




Convinced that market economy remakes society, Polanyi warns against a growing and humiliating enslavement to the material.

Polanyi's insights into the social and political impact of the market-driven economy were both timely and prescient, and have guaranteed him a place among the great thinkers of the twentieth century ... a good starting place for those wanting to know more about Polanyi, and a useful source for anyone seeking to understand our "interesting" times.
Canadian Book Review Annual

...a unique and compelling blend of the Enlightenment tradition with the more existential thinking of the twentieth century.
Prof. J.R. Stanfield

Volume one of the series: Critical Perspectives on Historic Issues

264 pages, photographs

Paperback ISBN: 0-921689-80-2 $19.99
Hardcover ISBN: 0-21689-81-0 $48.99
ISSN: 1195-1869
L.C. No. 90-83624

Prices are in Canadian dollars in Canada and in US dollars elsewhere

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Volume One THE LIFE AND WORK OF KARL POLANYI A Celebration Kari Polanyi-Levitt, ed. Description: This book developes Karl Polanyi's thinking for its significance in the practice of economics and everyday life in democratic societies, and also treats the life of Polanyi from a perspective that conveys an impression of the man, his times, and his place in the evolution of social and economic thought. Karl Polanyi believed that the greatest threat to freedom was a poorly administered economy. His search for economic and political institutions which reconciled society's need for freedom to develop a moral sense, with the requirements of our complex technological civilization, led him to believe in the possibility and necessity of an economics that was more existential and human-centred. He did not underestimate the significance of livelihood to lives. He emphasized nonetheless tht beyond sufficient livelihood, preoccupation with the pursuit of even more economic wealth greatly erodes the quality of human existence. Contents: Polanyi's Place in Hungarian Intellectual Life. J¢sef Bogn r (president of the Institute of World Economy of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and of the World Federation of Hungarians): Polanyi's novel methods of approaching archaic societies and the functioning of socialist society and economy. Erz‚bet Vez‚r (independent scholar, biographer, documentary producer, linguist):The Polanyi Family. Ferenc M£sci. (historian of the Hungarian Radical Party): The Start of Karl Polanyi's Career. Gy”rgy Litv n (Institute of Hungarian History of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences): Karl Polanyi's role in Hungarian Politics. Gy”rgy Dal¢s (biographer of Ilona Duczynska, Karl Polanyi's wife): The Fidelity of Equals: Ilona Duczynska and Karl Polanyi. Doug Brown (Northern Arizona Univ.): Karl Polanyi's Influence on the Budapest School. Socialism: Ludwig Von Mises versus Karl Polanyi. Peter Rosner (Univ. of Vienna): Karl Polanyi on Socialist Accounting. Marguerite Mendell (see bio. above): Karl Polanyi and Feasible Socialism. Lee Congdon ( James Madison Univ.) The sovereignty of Society: Polanyi in Vienna. The Great Transformation. Walter Goldfrank (Univ. of California at Santa Cruz): Fascism and The Great Transformation. Attila gh (Institute of Party History of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences) The Hundred Year's Peace: Karl Polanyi on the Dynamics of World Systems. Abraham Rotstein (Univ. of Toronto, Massey College): The Reality of Society: Karl Polanyi's Philosophical Perspective. Kari Polanyi-Levitt (see bio. below): The Origins and Significance of The Great Transformation. The Polanyi Reception. Endre Nagy (University of Budapest and the Hungarian Academy of Sciences): Polanyi's Reception in Hungary. Alfredo Salsano (editor, Boringhieri Press): The Great Transformation in the uvre of Karl Polanyi. Walter C. Neale (Univ. of Tennessee): Karl Polanyi and American Institutionalism. Margaret Somers (Univ. of Michigan, An Arbor): Karl Polanyi's Intellectual Legacy. Comparative Economic Anthropology. George Dalton (Northwestern Univ., editor of Polanyi's works): Writings that Clarify Theoretical Disputes Over Karl Polanyi's Work. G‚rald Berthoud (Univ. of Lausanne): Toward a Comparative Approach. Mih ly S rk ny (Institute of Ethnography of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences): Karl Polanyi's Contribution to Economic Anthropology. G‚za Komor¢scy (Institute of Ethnography of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences): Karl Polanyi's Historical Utopia: Alternatives to Formation theory. Contemporary Political and Economic Thought. J. Ron Stanfield (Colorado State University at Fort Collins): Karl Polanyi and Contemporary Economic Thought. Bj”rne Hettne ( Univ. of Gothenburg): The Contemporary Crisis: The Rise of Reciprocity. Colin Duncan ( York University, Toronto) and, Makoto Maruyama (Queen's University, Kingston): Japanese Counterpart to Karl Polanyi: The Power and Limitations of Kozo Uno's Perspective. Ayse Bugra (Bogazici Univ., Istanbul; Turkish translator of Polanyi's work): Economic Liberalism in Turkey. Farewell. Hans Zeisel (Univ. of Chicago School of Law): In Memoriam. Annexes: Bibliography of Polanyi's work; information on the Karl Polanyi Institute of Political Theory; an article by Kari Polanyi-Levitt onCo-Existence; the Pollascek/Polanyi Family Tree. Kari Polanyi-Levitt is a professor of development economics at McGill University, Montr‚al, and at the University of the West Indies; she is also Karl Polanyi's daughter. 272 pages, photographs, references, bibliography . ISBN: 0-921689-80-2 $19.99 Volume One THE LIFE AND WORK OF KARL POLANYI A Celebration EDITOR Kari Polanyi-Levitt teaches development economics at McGill University, Montr‚al, and at the University of the West Indies. TABLE OF CONTENTS AND CONTRIBUTORS: PART I: Polanyi's Place in Hungarian Intellectual Life J¢sef Bogn r is president of the Institute of World Economy of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and of the World Federation of Hungarians. He has published widely in the areas of international relations, African studies, and Hungarian social and economic policy. His contribution addresses Polanyi's novel methods of approaching archaic societies and the functioning of socialist society and economy. Erz‚bet Vez‚r is an independent scholar and biographer, documentary producer, and linguist. Her look at "The Polanyi Family" looks their place in Hungarian society and reflects her ground- breaking research on the family and its tremendous influence. Ferenc M£sci is a historian whose work includes a study of the Hungarian Radical Party. His article gives an account of..."the Start of Karl Polanyi's Career." Gy”rgy Litv n is an historian with the Institute of Hungarian History of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, and author of the biographies of Oszk r J szi and Ervin Szab¢. Here he examines..."Karl Polanyi's role in Hungarian Politics." Gy”rgy Dal¢s is a biographer and has published a biography of Ilona Duczynska, Karl Polanyi's wife. His contribution looks at the important influence of Duczynska's character and thinking on Karl Polanyi. Doug Brown teaches Economics at the College of Business Administration of Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff. He is author of The Budapest Schol: A Neo-Marxian Defense of the Mixed Economy. In his contribution, he looks at..."Karl Polanyi's Influence on the Budapest School." PART II: Ludwig Von Mises versus Karl Polanyi Peter Rosner is professor of economics at the University of Vienna. His article is entitled, "Karl Polanyi on Socialist Accounting." Marguerite Mendell's contribution discusses the uniqueness of Polanyi's contribution to socialist accountancy and to arguments for "feasible socialism." Lee Congdon is professor of History at James Madison University, Harrison, Virginia whose specialty is Hungarian intellectual life at the turn of the century. In "The sovereignty of Society", he discusses influences on Polanyi's thought during his years in Vienna. PART IV: The Great Transformation Walter Goldfrank, Professor of Sociology at the University of California at Santa Cruz, has a long publishing history in world economic theory. His article, "Fascism and The Great Transformation", discusses Polanyi's radical alternatives to both liberal and Marxian approaches to fascism. Attila gh teaches political science and international relations at the Institute of Party History of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. gh's piece is entitled, "The Hundred Year's Peace: Karl Polanyi on the Dynamics of World Systems." Abraham Rotstein is Professor of Economics and Political Science at the University of Toronto and senior fellow of Massey College; he collaborated with Polanyi in publishing Dahomey and the Slave Trade. His article is entitled, "The Reality of Society: Karl Polanyi's Philosophical Perspective." Kari Polanyi-Levitt's contribution, "The Origins and Significance of The Great Transformation, situates that work in terms of contributing theories, the historic moment, and its effects on the world of political economy. PART V: The Polanyi Reception Endre Nagy is Professor of Sociology at the university of Budapest and a member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. "Polanyi's Reception in Hungary" looks at how The Great Transformation was received both ideologically and theoretically. Alfredo Salsano is an editor with Boringhieri Press, and specializes in the history of socialist thought. He contributed significantly to the Italian editions of Polanyi's works. His article is entitled, "The Great Transformation in the uvre of Karl Polanyi" and looks at the publication history and the reception of The Great Transformation in its many translations. Walter C. Neale is Professor of Economics at the University of Tennessee. A colleague of Karl Polanyi's, his contribution touches on Polanyi's effect on American institutions, society and government, and technology. Margaret Somers teaches sociology at the University of Michigan, An Arbor, and has contributed significantly to the understanding of Karl Polanyi's work and its significance. In "Karl Polanyi's Intellectual Legacy" she discusses Polanyi's objection to the economistic view of human nature that separates "economics" from the "social". George Dalton is Professor of Economics and Anthropology at Northwestern University in Chicago, and is editor of an anthology of Polanyi's work. His contribution is entitled, "Writings that Clarify Theoretical Disputes Over Karl Polanyi's Work." G‚rald Berthoud is Professor of Anthropology at the University of Lausanne. His contribution discusses Polanyi's generalist approach and is entitled, "Toward a Comparative Approach: The Contribution of Karl Polanyi." Mih ly S rk ny teaches anthropology at the Institute of Ethnography of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and is the leading Hungarian scholar in his field on the work of Polanyi. His contribution here is entitled, "Karl Polanyi's Contribution to Economic Anthropology." G‚za Komor¢scy is an Assyrologist who teaches at the Institute of Ethnography of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in Budapest. Komor¢scy's contribution, "Karl Polanyi's Historical Utopia", looks at Polanyi's analytical categories, and his presentation of alternatives to formation theory. PART VI: Contemporary Political and Economic Thought J. Ron Stanfield is Professor of Economics at Colorado State University at Fort Collins. He has published widely on Polanyi's work. In his article, "Karl Polanyi and Contemporary Economic Thought", looks at the place of livelihood in contemporary human society and the limitations of formalism in the light of a "disembedded economy." Bj”rne Hettne is Professor of Peace and Development Studies at the University of Gothenburg, and has published widely in contemporary social and economic theory. In his article, "The Contemporary Crisis: The Rise of Reciprocity", he discusses the relationship of institution and counterpoint and suggests that the resurgence of the counterpoint corresponds to a revival of reciprocity structures. Colin Duncan is a graduate of the interdisciplinary programme in social and political thought at York University in Toronto. Makoto Maruyama teaches at Queen's University at Kingston, Canada. Their article discusses..."The Japanese Counterpart to Karl Polanyi: The Power and Limitations of Kozo Uno's Perspective." Ayse Bugra is Professor of Economics at Bogazici University in Istanbul. She translated wrote the introduction to the Turkish edition of The Great Transformation. Her paper, "Economic Liberalism in Turkey", evaluates economic policies implemented in Turkey in the 1980s on the basis of certain insights derived from Karl Polanyi's work. PART VII: In Memoriam Hans Zeisel is Professor Emeritus of the University of Chicago School of Law, was a close friend of the Polanyi family in Vienna. ANNEXES The annexes to this volume provide a bibliography of Polanyi's work; information on the Karl Polanyi Institute of Political Theory; an article by Kari Polanyi-Levitt on Co- Existence; and a family tree of the Pollascek/Polanyi Family Tree. DESCRIPTION: This book developes Karl Polanyi's thinking for its significance in the practice of economics and everyday life in democratic societies, and also treats the life of Polanyi from a perspective that conveys an impression of the man, his times, and his place in the evolution of social and economic thought. Karl Polanyi believed that the greatest threat to freedom was a poorly administered economy. His search for economic and political institutions which reconciled society's need for freedom to develop a moral sense, with the requirements of our complex technological civilization, led him to believe in the possibility and necessity of an economics that was more existential and human-centred. He did not underestimate the significance of livelihood to lives. He emphasized nonetheless tht beyond sufficient livelihood, preoccupation with the pursuit of even more economic wealth greatly erodes the quality of human existence.