Cooling out the marks: The ideology and politics of financial markets

Glynos, Jason, Klimecki, Robin and Willmott, Hugh ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1321-7041 2012. Cooling out the marks: The ideology and politics of financial markets. Journal of Cultural Economy 5 (3) , pp. 297-320. 10.1080/17530350.2012.675885

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Abstract

Why has the financial crisis not led to more radical public contestation and political reforms? In investigating the muted response to the crisis so far, the paper highlights the significance of ideological fantasy for appreciating the interpenetration of economy and society. We interpret the lack of resistance to how the crisis as an exercise in ‘cooling out’ (Goffman) underpinned by a restorative fantasmatic narrative. The ‘enjoyment’ derived from scapegoating individual bankers has reinforced passivity and narrowed the debate. By investigating a range of media and policy responses to the meltdown, we conclude that the pre-credit crunch ideology of ‘no more boom and bust’ has been replaced by an equally ideological narrative that promises a re-normalization of processes of financialization. This allows for the preservation of key elements of neo-liberalist capitalism as well as the dismissal of alternative projects. The paper shows how, exemplified by the establishment and operation of United Kingdom Financial Investments Ltd (UKFI), the post-crisis ideology continues to shield financial markets from public scrutiny and intervention

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Business (Including Economics)
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HB Economic Theory
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Erving Goffman, ideological fantasy, financial crisis, neo-liberalism, financialization, United Kingdom Financial Investments Ltd (UKFI)
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
ISSN:	1753-0350
Last Modified:	24 Oct 2022 11:07
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/47035

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