LIBERAL CREED AND ITS CRITICS: PAUPERISM AND SAFETY NET

Resumo

In 1944, two remarkable books on theories of political economy, The Great Transformation and The Road to Serfdom, present opposite visions of the relationship between the birth of the “market” and the origin of fascisms: according to the former, the market generates fascism as society's (unplanned and unforeseeable) self-defense response to increasing pauperism and against the liberal creed; the latter holds that the market is the best or even the necessary means to protect liberty against the return of totalitarianisms, now in the guise of “planning”. This paper examines the arguments of both authors, seeking to elucidate and debate Hayek's (supposed) concessions to state intervention. It also throws light on the question of why, later on, he felt inclined to abandon entirely the proposal of a safety net to defend the victims of market failures.