Debt to Society: Accounting for Life under Capitalism by Miranda Joseph (review)

DEBT TO SOCIETY: Accounting for Life under Capitalism. By Miranda Joseph. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. 2014.In Debt to Society: Accounting for Life under Capitalism, Miranda Joseph engages in a critical analysis of accounting practices related to debt and credit. The “accounting practices” Joseph explores cover a wide range, including those related to the Occupy Wall Street spinoff Strike Debt, the literal monetary debt of citizens and corporations, the presumed debt of incarcerated citizens implied within the title, connections between accounting and accountability, normative gender ideals, and the current state of higher education. The text complicates and problematizes academic discourse regarding conceptualizations of depersonalization and quantification, but may range too broadly to satisfy readers’ desire for concrete analysis of any one particular topic. Grounded in critical theory/cultural studies, the book follows in the interdisciplinary tradition of scholars like David Harvey and Lisa Duggan in theorizing the construction of neoliberal normativity. The subtitle would more accurately describe the focus of the text if it were “life under neoliberalism,” as the focus of Joseph’s analysis is on “discursive materials” that “are artifacts of the current conjuncture, frequently named neoliberalism” (xi).Joseph begins with her theoretical underpinnings and methodology, noting that “this project is indebted to [Lauren] Berlant” (xvi) and Berlant’s work appears to provide a very significant contribution to the theoretical grounding of the text. The book contests formulations of the contemporary financial market as problematic due to being “depersonalized and globalized” (9); Joseph argues that the “financial structure” in reality “depends on a disrespectful regard for particular borrowers” (25). In support of this, she provides a historical contextualization of accounting practices, beginning with double-entry bookkeeping and its creation of a system of credits and debits as a regulatory force. From there, Joseph considers the relationship between accounting and justice, discussing the history of debtors’ prison, penality, and slavery, and their implications for present-day racially unequal incarceration rates.Additionally, the book follows in the tradition of feminist standpoint theory by addressing how Joseph’s own positionality influences her approach, as well as consistently attending to the differential impacts of race, gender, and class.