What Capitalism Needs - Forgotten Lessons of Great Economists

From unemployment to Brexit to climate change, capitalism is in trouble and ill-prepared to cope with the challenges of the coming decades. How did we get here? While contemporary economists and policymakers tend to ignore the political and social dimensions of capitalism, some of the great economists of the past - Adam Smith, Friedrich List, John Maynard Keynes, Joseph Schumpeter, Karl Polanyi and Albert Hirschman - did not make the same mistake. Leveraging their insights, sociologists John L. Campbell and John A. Hall trace the historical development of capitalism as a social, political, and economic system throughout the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. They draw comparisons across eras and around the globe to show that there is no inevitable logic of capitalism. Rather, capitalism's performance depends on the strength of nation-states, the social cohesion of capitalist societies, and the stability of the international system - three things that are in short supply today.

List of contents

1. Sociology from economics; 2. Phoenix from the ashes; 3. Storm clouds; 4. Nationalism and social cohesion; 5. State failure; 6. What next?

About the author

John L. Campbell is the Class of 1925 Professor & Professor of Sociology at Dartmouth College. He is the author of American Discontent and other books.  John A. Hall is the James McGill Professor of Comparative Historical Sociology at McGill University. He is the author of The Importance of Being Civil and other books.

Summary

Sociologists John L. Campbell and John A. Hall trace the historical development of capitalism as a social, political, and economic system. Drawing on the forgotten insights of great economists of the past and comparisons across countries and eras, they explain why capitalism today is failing.

Report

'This superb book reminds us of one enduring insight. Economists like Smith, Hirschman, List, Keynes, Schumpeter, and Polanyi understood what modern economics has forgotten. Capitalism does not flourish when markets are fully free. It thrives when they are socially embedded and politically well governed. A turbulent twentieth century has made this pandemic moment ripe for this timeless reminder.' Peter J. Katzenstein, Cornell University

Product details

• Authors: John L Campbell, John L. Campbell, John L. Hall Campbell, Campbell John L., John A Hall, John A. Hall, John A. (Mcgill University Hall, Hall John A.
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press Academic
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 31.08.2021
• EAN: 9781108487825
• ISBN: 978-1-108-48782-5
• Dimensions: 150 mm x 225 mm x 23 mm
• Subjects: Social sciences, law, business > Business > Management; Sociology, Social Theory, Economics, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Sociology / General, BUSINESS & ECONOMICS / Economics / General, BUSINESS & ECONOMICS / Economic History, BUSINESS & ECONOMICS / International / General, POLITICAL SCIENCE / Political Economy, BUSINESS & ECONOMICS / Economics / Theory, POLITICAL SCIENCE / International Relations / General, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Sociology / Social Theory, International Relations, Economic history, Economic theory & philosophy, International business, Political Economy, Economic theory and philosophy