Crisis of legitimacy in Captalist economies
Discuss the 'crisis of legitimacy' in capitalist societies. (Habermas) UPSC 2015 Paper 1A - Qn 4a Marxists perceived legitimacy as a bourgeoise myth and concluded that legitimacy could not be achieved in conditions of inequality. However, Habermas admitted that liberal democracies have a system to generate consent and support from the people. According to him, the democratic system, the party system, social and welfare reforms, etc. play a key role in maintaining the legitimacy of the state. But, he also noticed that it is hard to maintain legitimacy in a biased political system that produces sustained unequal class power. Habermas in his work, 'Legitimation Crisis (1973)' noticed that c risis tendencies emerged in liberal democracies as a result of the contradiction between capitalist accumulation and populist demands. Democracies put pressure on the state to expand its social responsibilities and raise demands for social welfare provisions. As the social wel...