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Royal frican Society

ReviewAuthor(s): Paul NugentReview by: Paul NugentSource: African Affairs, Vol. 85, No. 338 (Jan., 1986), pp. 147-148Published by: on behalf ofOxford University Press Royal African SocietyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/722233Accessed: 23-01-2016 04:38 UTC

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OOK REVIEWSOOK REVIEWS

Significantly,when Wheatcroft indshimselfon thin ice, he skates ast and writes

statements hat, for example,Africanresentmentat their position in contemporary

South Africa is really rather . . . ambiguous. They want to be rid of white

supremacyand yet they want to go on enjoying the benefits of a rich industrial

society. Soweto is not merely a grim compound: it is the most prosperous

black Africancity anywhere. This explainsthe continuing ailureof the African

Nationalist [sic] Congress . to stir up the blacks (p. 268). Not only is

the thought of Soweto as prosperous indefensible nonsense, present-day

developments n South Africagive the resounding ie to Wheatcroft s iews on the

ANC.

Institute f Commonzvealthtudies,

London JEANACQUESANHELTEN

What Is Political Economy? A Study of Social Theory and

Underdevelopment, by Martin Staniland. Yale University Press, New Haven

and London, 1985. xi + 229 pp. ISBN 0-300-03295-1 ,618 50 in UK.

As Stanilandbegins by noting, almost every other book these days carriesthe

term politicaleconomy n the title or sub-title. Often nothing specific s meant

by this, but usually it is intended to convey the idea that the book in question

hopes to show in some way an interplaybetweeneconomicand politicalprocesses.

Stanilandarguesthat, in spite of sometimesbeing accorded he status of a theory,

politicaleconomy s reallyonly a broad ield in which opposingtheoretical chools

compete. WhatIs PoliticalEconomy?,hen, is an exploration f how some of these

quite differentschools cope with the same problem of depicting the relationship

between economics and politics, ranging from theories that are deterministic o

those that are interactive. It covers neo-classicaleconomicsand the attemptsto

apply its assumptions to political behaviour; counter-theory reasserting the

primacy of politics; theories of internationalpolitical economy; and Marxism.

This considerationogetherof theories hat areoften so at odds as regards oncepts,

methodologyand values as to miss any point of contact, s largelywhat makes his

bookso appealing. Inevitably n a bookwith this breadthof focus, whatthe author

says about the content of the theories s fairly schematicand some of the critiques

are second-hand,but the result s as lucid and accurate s one could hope for.

A dominant heme of the book is the quite differentexpectationsand develop-

ment of theory in Western centres of learning and the Third World. In the

developed countries, Stanilandargues, theoreticaldebate has tended to produce

more complex interactive theories. Thus, neo-classical economics has been

criticized on the grounds that the Adam Smithian stress on the primacy of the

individualand the marketbears ittle relevance n the modernworld of large cor-

porationsand increasing tate nterventionism, ut criticshavemerelyattempted o

incorporatepower relationships none has apparentlygone so far as to write a

theory of political determinism. Theories that evolve in a Third World context,

by contrast, tend towards a greaterdegree of determinism,as manifested n the

growth of dependency heory. Stanilanddoes not really attemptto explain why

this should be so, althoughpresumably he idea is that Third Worldacademicsare

on the whole as much concerned to change the world as to describe it. The

divergent demandsof Third World theory resurface n Staniland sdiscussion of

Marxism. WithinWesternMarxism,dissatisfactionwith the instrumentalist iew

of politics n the classical raditionhas led to an assertionof the relativeautonomyof

Significantly,when Wheatcroft indshimselfon thin ice, he skates ast and writes

statements hat, for example,Africanresentmentat their position in contemporary

South Africa is really rather . . . ambiguous. They want to be rid of white

supremacyand yet they want to go on enjoying the benefits of a rich industrial

society. Soweto is not merely a grim compound: it is the most prosperous

black Africancity anywhere. This explainsthe continuing ailureof the African

Nationalist [sic] Congress . to stir up the blacks (p. 268). Not only is

the thought of Soweto as prosperous indefensible nonsense, present-day

developments n South Africagive the resounding ie to Wheatcroft s iews on the

ANC.

Institute f Commonzvealthtudies,

London JEANACQUESANHELTEN

What Is Political Economy? A Study of Social Theory and

Underdevelopment, by Martin Staniland. Yale University Press, New Haven

and London, 1985. xi + 229 pp. ISBN 0-300-03295-1 ,618 50 in UK.

As Stanilandbegins by noting, almost every other book these days carriesthe

term politicaleconomy n the title or sub-title. Often nothing specific s meant

by this, but usually it is intended to convey the idea that the book in question

hopes to show in some way an interplaybetweeneconomicand politicalprocesses.

Stanilandarguesthat, in spite of sometimesbeing accorded he status of a theory,

politicaleconomy s reallyonly a broad ield in which opposingtheoretical chools

compete. WhatIs PoliticalEconomy?,hen, is an exploration f how some of these

quite differentschools cope with the same problem of depicting the relationship

between economics and politics, ranging from theories that are deterministic o

those that are interactive. It covers neo-classicaleconomicsand the attemptsto

apply its assumptions to political behaviour; counter-theory reasserting the

primacy of politics; theories of internationalpolitical economy; and Marxism.

This considerationogetherof theories hat areoften so at odds as regards oncepts,

methodologyand values as to miss any point of contact, s largelywhat makes his

bookso appealing. Inevitably n a bookwith this breadthof focus, whatthe author

says about the content of the theories s fairly schematicand some of the critiques

are second-hand,but the result s as lucid and accurate s one could hope for.

A dominant heme of the book is the quite differentexpectationsand develop-

ment of theory in Western centres of learning and the Third World. In the

developed countries, Stanilandargues, theoreticaldebate has tended to produce

more complex interactive theories. Thus, neo-classical economics has been

criticized on the grounds that the Adam Smithian stress on the primacy of the

individualand the marketbears ittle relevance n the modernworld of large cor-

porationsand increasing tate nterventionism, ut criticshavemerelyattempted o

incorporatepower relationships none has apparentlygone so far as to write a

theory of political determinism. Theories that evolve in a Third World context,

by contrast, tend towards a greaterdegree of determinism,as manifested n the

growth of dependency heory. Stanilanddoes not really attemptto explain why

this should be so, althoughpresumably he idea is that Third Worldacademicsare

on the whole as much concerned to change the world as to describe it. The

divergent demandsof Third World theory resurface n Staniland sdiscussion of

Marxism. WithinWesternMarxism,dissatisfactionwith the instrumentalist iew

of politics n the classical raditionhas led to an assertionof the relativeautonomyof

This content downloaded from 103.231.241.233 on Sat, 23 Jan 2016 04:38:21 UTCAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp

7/25/2019 What is Political Economy Review

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14848

AFRICANAFFAIRSFRICANAFFAIRS

the state and a more complex account of economic and political processes. But

within a Third World context, the further issue of the relationshipbetween

domestic and external orces is raised. While some have adhered o the logic of

orthodoxMarxismand have portrayeddomesticpolitical orces as merelya reflec-

tion of the demandsof international apital,Third World intellectualshave often

sought a theorythat gives some role to domesticclasses. The result, according o

Staniland, s that works such as that of Shivji are often an inversionof Marxist

analysis,vergingon politicism.

All of this gives plenty of food for thought, but one feels slightly cheatedby the

conclusion to the book. Having led his readerson a great trek through theory,

Staniland eavesthem with the followingproposition: s long as there s a varietyof

cultures, here will be a varietyof theories,and because hese will containa variety

of valuesand assumptions,one can criticize he theoriesbut never choose between

them. The readermight be excused or wonderinghow culturalvarietyhas stolen

centre-stagewhen, if anything,the book shows the strongestcorrelationbetween

theory and levels of development,which cuts across culture. Similarly, a new

book by Blomstromand Hettne (DevelopmentTheory n Transition) hows how

. . .

qulte slmllarviews on dependencyhave emergedacross the Third World, some-

times independently. Secondly, it is difficultto see why underlyingvalues and

assumptions hould insulate heory. Marxismhas a strongvalue content,but the

validity of its analysis(and its values) can surely be assessed in the light of how

successfully t copes with reality. It is true of course that no single theory has

managed o do justice to all the complexitiesof human society but this is another

argument, besides which there is a clear distinction between theory that is

inherently limited (one thinks of public choice ) and theory that possesses the

concepts but has not mastered he equation. In spite of this, What Is Political

Ecorlomy? ill be of interest o a wide audience,not leastto Africanistswho will find

many amiliardebatesset in the contextof the problematic f the book.

Schoolof Oriental ndAfricanStudies,

London PAUL UGENT

And Night Fell, by Molefe Pheto. London, Allison and Busby, 1983. 218

PP ?8 95

It says something or the impactthat this book has had that it has alreadybeen

snappedup as a paperbaekby the HeinemannAfricanWriters Series (No. 258,

1985)within two yearsof its originalpublieation. This will no doubt give it wider

eireulationbut the originalLondon publishers,Allison and Busby, are to be eon-

gratulated or reeognizingdistinetion n what could easily have been a predietable

catalogueof poliee brutality. Just as too many images of starving children or

urbanviolence ean numb the average elevisionviewer ssensibilityso, regrettably

but it wouldbe wrongnot to admit t, the praeticed eader f SouthAfrican iterature

and watcherof South Afrieanplays can be over-exposed o the chillingly eandid

prisoneell interrogation r the screamof agonyas the eleetrodesare applied o the

testicles. These are ignoblereflectionsbut I believe them to be true. We can all

build up a resistance o humansuffering.

It is thereforewith a sense of debt to Molefe Pheto that I reviewAnd Night Fell,

for he re-awakensn me, and I am sure n all his readers,a sense of immediacy t the

horrorof South Africa sofficialrepression. His book is sub-titled Memoirsof a

PoliticalPrisoner n South Africa . It is a recordof 281 days spent in detention

the state and a more complex account of economic and political processes. But

within a Third World context, the further issue of the relationshipbetween

domestic and external orces is raised. While some have adhered o the logic of

orthodoxMarxismand have portrayeddomesticpolitical orces as merelya reflec-

tion of the demandsof international apital,Third World intellectualshave often

sought a theorythat gives some role to domesticclasses. The result, according o

Staniland, s that works such as that of Shivji are often an inversionof Marxist

analysis,vergingon politicism.

All of this gives plenty of food for thought, but one feels slightly cheatedby the

conclusion to the book. Having led his readerson a great trek through theory,

Staniland eavesthem with the followingproposition: s long as there s a varietyof

cultures, here will be a varietyof theories,and because hese will containa variety

of valuesand assumptions,one can criticize he theoriesbut never choose between

them. The readermight be excused or wonderinghow culturalvarietyhas stolen

centre-stagewhen, if anything,the book shows the strongestcorrelationbetween

theory and levels of development,which cuts across culture. Similarly, a new

book by Blomstromand Hettne (DevelopmentTheory n Transition) hows how

. . .

qulte slmllarviews on dependencyhave emergedacross the Third World, some-

times independently. Secondly, it is difficultto see why underlyingvalues and

assumptions hould insulate heory. Marxismhas a strongvalue content,but the

validity of its analysis(and its values) can surely be assessed in the light of how

successfully t copes with reality. It is true of course that no single theory has

managed o do justice to all the complexitiesof human society but this is another

argument, besides which there is a clear distinction between theory that is

inherently limited (one thinks of public choice ) and theory that possesses the

concepts but has not mastered he equation. In spite of this, What Is Political

Ecorlomy? ill be of interest o a wide audience,not leastto Africanistswho will find

many amiliardebatesset in the contextof the problematic f the book.

Schoolof Oriental ndAfricanStudies,

London PAUL UGENT

And Night Fell, by Molefe Pheto. London, Allison and Busby, 1983. 218

PP ?8 95

It says something or the impactthat this book has had that it has alreadybeen

snappedup as a paperbaekby the HeinemannAfricanWriters Series (No. 258,

1985)within two yearsof its originalpublieation. This will no doubt give it wider

eireulationbut the originalLondon publishers,Allison and Busby, are to be eon-

gratulated or reeognizingdistinetion n what could easily have been a predietable

catalogueof poliee brutality. Just as too many images of starving children or

urbanviolence ean numb the average elevisionviewer ssensibilityso, regrettably

but it wouldbe wrongnot to admit t, the praeticed eader f SouthAfrican iterature

and watcherof South Afrieanplays can be over-exposed o the chillingly eandid

prisoneell interrogation r the screamof agonyas the eleetrodesare applied o the

testicles. These are ignoblereflectionsbut I believe them to be true. We can all

build up a resistance o humansuffering.

It is thereforewith a sense of debt to Molefe Pheto that I reviewAnd Night Fell,

for he re-awakensn me, and I am sure n all his readers,a sense of immediacy t the

horrorof South Africa sofficialrepression. His book is sub-titled Memoirsof a

PoliticalPrisoner n South Africa . It is a recordof 281 days spent in detention

This content downloaded from 103.231.241.233 on Sat, 23 Jan 2016 04:38:21 UTCAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp