The welfare state is a crucial organizational and institutional component of modern capitalism. As human enters the 21st century, market rationality centered on neoliberalism, identity politics driven by right-wing populist forces, and technological rationality represented by digitalization have simultaneously eroded the existing foundations and appearance of the welfare state, giving rise to a new political image of the “late capitalist welfare state.” Compared to the golden age after World War II, the politics of the capitalist welfare state continue to revolve around the redistribution of resources and values. To what extent can embracing market and technological rationality within the existing social policy system effectively prevent the deterioration of inequality and social exclusion? Under what conditions can it rebuild its social contract and political space within a changing social fragmentation structure? From an interpretive and critical stance, this book analyzes the normative order changes and inherent paradoxes of the new era of capitalist welfare states, and envisions an organic welfare state based on relational autonomy.

Translated by Ruihan CHEN

Full text in Chinese available at:

https://fddi.fudan.edu.cn/93/9b/c19045a758683/page.htm