Full Description
The world has been bombarded in recent years with images of the luxurious lives and wealth of corrupt oligarchs and kleptocrats, amassed at the expense of ordinary people. Such images exploit our feelings of injustice, are taken as indicative of moral decay, and inspire a desire to purge our economies of dirty money, objects, and people.
But why do anti-corruption efforts routinely fail? What kind of world are they creating? Looking at luxury art, antiquities, superyachts, and populist politics, this book explores the connection between luxury and corruption, and offers an alternative to the received wisdom of how we tackle corruption.
Contents
Preface: Luxury, Corruption, and the Assumption of Harmlessness
Chapter 1: Luxury, Anti-Corruption, and the Fantasy of Wholeness
Chapter 2: Russian Kleptocrat Luxury, Naval'nyi's Exposés, and the Global Anti-Policy Syndrome
Chapter 3: Compliance, Defiance, and the Fight against Crime through the Markets in Art, Antiquities and Luxury
Chapter 4: Luxury, Encasement, and the Emptiness of Anti-Corruption's Ethics
Epilogue: Luxury, Corruption, and the Death Drive
