Neoliberalism encompassed bitter internal conflicts, not a unified doctrine.

Evidence

Nine Lives of Neoliberalism places ideas in context and follows them in action. Sites of analysis include the League of Nations’ intellectual wing, the Bellagio Group of academics and central bankers, and the California tax and welfare reform movement. Against charges that critical scholars cast neoliberalism as a monolith, Nine Lives of Neoliberalism also emphasizes the diversity and heterogeneity of the neoliberal thought style. Attention is drawn to the deep influence of the philosophy of science on early neoliberalism, the contested nature of behavioral economics in neoliberalism, the divergent stances on the idea of intellectual property rights, and the bitter conflicts within the Mont Pélerin Society (MPS) over what might underpin a global monetary order. — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 20

Categorization

• XREF: Directly serves the reader’s stated goal of fracturing the caricature of neoliberalism; connects to earlier chapters treating the MPS’s internal monetary debates. — connects to: Neoliberalism was never a unified doctrine but three distinct sects from its founding. — Philip Mirowski, Never Let a Serious Crisis Go to Waste, 120; Neoliberalism may not cohere as a unified doctrine in actual practice. — Philip Mirowski, Never Let a Serious Crisis Go to Waste, 185; Neoliberalism is internally diverse and marked by real internal conflict — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 45 (+11 more)
• QUESTION: Worth chasing: how did philosophy-of-science commitments actually shape early neoliberal policy reasoning, beyond intellectual genealogy?

Broader Connections

• Neoliberalism was a flexible project, not a fixed doctrine with essential content #corroborates (0.95) — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 115
• Neoliberalism originated in contested debate, not a pure doctrine #corroborates (0.90) — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 405
• Neoliberalism holds together several unresolved internal contradictions by asserting both sides at once #expands (0.85) — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 2142
• Neoliberalism’s contestedness reflects its diffuse, multi-variant nature, not emptiness. #corroborates (0.85) — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 2095
• Neoliberalism is a novel doctrine in flux, not a return to laissez-faire #expands (0.80) — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 439
• Disputes over the word neoliberalism signaled real disagreement over its content #qualifies (0.80) — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 294
• Neoliberalism was a pluralist movement opposing three rival liberal traditions, not a corporate tool #corroborates (0.80) — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 2115
• Neoliberalism operates through systematic contradiction and disavowal of its own practices #expands (0.75) — Wendy Brown, Undoing the Demos, 81