Singapore Wealth Power & Culture

This book examines SingaporeÂs culture of control, exploring the city-stateÂs colonial heritage as well as the forces that have helped to mould its current social landscape. Taking a comparative approach, Trocki demonstrates the links between SingaporeÂs colonial past and independent present, focusing on the development of indigenous social and political movements. In particular, the book examines the efforts of Lee Yew Kuan, leader of the PeopleÂs Action Party from 1959 until 1990, to produce major economic and social transformation. Trocki discusses how Singapore became a workers paradise, but what the city gained in material advancement it paid for in intellectual and cultural sterility. Based on the latest research, the book addresses the question of control in one of the most prosperous and dynamic economies in the world, providing a compelling history of post-colonial Singapore.