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Academic Radicalism in the Present Conjuncture: The University as a Contested Terrain

Author

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  • Snehashish Bhattacharya

Abstract

This essay reflects on academic radicalism in the current conjuncture, focusing on the position of tenured faculty within the modern university. It links the prevailing regime of intimidation and coercion against radicalism and critical thought to the ongoing crisis of the university—marked by widespread popular disenchantment—and situates both within the broader crisis of global capitalism. The essay argues that the university’s significance must be understood, among other factors, through its material and ideological role in securing the conditions for capitalism’s existence and reproduction across both “advanced†and postcolonial capitalist economies. In this context, it contends that academic radicalism can only be sustained by recognizing that the earlier sanction for criticality—once instrumental in legitimizing capitalism’s enlightened self-image—has ceased to serve any significant systemic role at the present moment. JEL Classification : B50, P10, P16

Suggested Citation

  • Snehashish Bhattacharya, 2025. "Academic Radicalism in the Present Conjuncture: The University as a Contested Terrain," Review of Radical Political Economics, Union for Radical Political Economics, vol. 57(3), pages 649-658, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:reorpe:v:57:y:2025:i:3:p:649-658
    DOI: 10.1177/04866134251348008
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Surbhi Kesar & Snehashish Bhattacharya & Lopamudra Banerjee, 2020. "Contradictions and crisis in the world of work in the present conjuncture: Informality, precarity and the pandemic," Working Papers 253, Department of Economics, SOAS University of London, UK, revised Oct 2022.
    2. Surbhi Kesar & Snehashish Bhattacharya & Lopamudra Banerjee, 2022. "Contradictions and Crisis in the World of Work: Informality, Precarity and the Pandemic," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 53(6), pages 1254-1282, November.
    3. Peter Temin, 2016. "The American Dual Economy," International Journal of Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 45(2), pages 85-123, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • B50 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - Current Heterodox Approaches - - - General
    • P10 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Capitalist Economies - - - General
    • P16 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Capitalist Economies - - - Capitalist Institutions; Welfare State

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