Morte e ressurreição do capitalismo: a propósito de Schumpeter

Abstract

The economical crisis and the emergence of the "new technologies" in the 70's brought a new popularity to the work of Joseph Schumpeter. In this article, the author discusses how recent history has danied Schumpeter's predictions concerning the passage of capitalism to socialism. First of all, it has not been proved that rationalization of industrial progress redacts the level of inovation, extinguishing the roles of the entreprensur and the inventor. It is quite the opposite, for the aleatory character of inovation is such that a not-planned economy suits much better its nature. Concerning the second aspect, the growing role of the State in the activities of research-development, the world scene of 1945 has changed drastically from the 70 's onward when the civil markets demand for high technology outweighted the public demands. The third point relates to the function of intellectuals. The expansion and simultaneous devaluation of superior education generate an exceeding number of individual who develop a critical view towards the system. But if such "hostility" is due only to resentment, as Schumpeter believes, it will never have enought strength to put an end to capitalism. Therefore, if there is nothing, from an economical point of view, that postulates the disappearance of capitalim, the sociological and psychological reasons expouded by Schumpeter have the same weakness of ideological statements.