The crisis in Greece: questions of economy, state and democracy

• Published date: 21 May 2018
• Date: 21 May 2018
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/EDI-09-2017-0193
• Pages: 411-419
• Author: Maria Markantonatou,Brigitte Aulenbacher,Birgit Riegraf
• Subject Matter: HR & organizational behaviour,Employment law,Diversity, equality, inclusion

The crisis in Greece: questions of

economy, state and democracy

Maria Markantonatou

Department of Sociology, School of Social Sciences, University of the Aegean,

Mytilene, Greece

interviewed by

Brigitte Aulenbacher

Department for the Theory of Society and Social Analyses,

Johannes Kepler University, Linz, Austria, and

Birgit Riegraf

Department of Sociology, University Paderborn, Paderborn, Germany

Keywords Greece, Crisis, Austerity policies, Karl Polanyi

Paper type Viewpoint

1. Introduction

Maria Markantonatou is an Assistant Professor in Political Sociology at the Department of

Sociology in Lesvos, University of the Aegean, Greece. She had been a fellow at the

Max Planck Institute Cologne, Germany and is a Senior Fellow at the Research Group

Post-Growth Societies at the Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena, Germany. Her analysis

of the crisis in Greece (Markantonatou, 2013, 2014, 2016) has drawn international attention in

many professionaldiscussions and broader audiences. Her work includesa profound analysis

of the economic, social and political structure and development of contemporary capitalism

and the deep going processes of transformation as well as a reflection on everyday life

experience. Drawing on Karl Polanyi,in her current research she focuses on theeffects of the

crisis on the Greek democracy and let us better understand how the Greek situation is

influenced by the austerity schemes on the level of the state and politics and on the level of

people’s experiences. As sociologist working in Greece, her interview furthermore allows the

readers to get some insights in universities in crisis and how the financial situation restricts

conditions for science and especially critical science.

2. Interview with Maria Markantonatou

Brigitte Aulenbacher and Birgit Riegraf: In your analysis, you refer to Karl Polanyi’s work

to understand the contemporary developments in Europe and Greece. Why is that?

Maria Markantonatou: Except for his well-known general critique of the “self-regulating”

economy, which has become so influential during these last decades of neoliberalization,

Polanyi offers important insights also for the understanding of today’s crisis in Greece and

the Eurozone. His analysis of the interwar period is illustrative of the disruptive effects of

liberal crisis management. It also shows the social limits of attacking labor and the welfare

institutions, as well as the social divisions that fiscal issues can generate in societies

in which economic policy is increasingly dissociated from social needs, especially in

countries most severely hit by the crisis. He demonstrates how the free market ideology can

operate as a tool for social discipline and how this can lead to the birth of anti-democratic

forces. Crucial for today, he sheds light on the complex effects of intense market

internationalization on national democracies that still have no other option than relying on

elections and parliaments.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion:

An International Journal

Vol. 37 No. 4, 2018

pp. 411-419

© Emerald PublishingLimited

2040-7149

DOI 10.1108/EDI-09-2017-0193

Received 24 September 2017

Accepted 25 September 2017

The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:

www.emeraldinsight.com/2040-7149.htm

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The crisis in

Greece