Will capitalism destroy us or liberate us?
Capitalism stands unrivalled as the economic system of our times. Since the collapse of
the Soviet bloc, the world has become a stage for capital, and yet despite this dominance,
capitalism is still not well-understood.
This is a guide to thinking about capitalism, both as an ideology and as an
economic system. It asks: what are the central, unchanging features of capitalism? How
does capitalism vary from place to place and over time? Is capitalism a system which is
‘natural’ and ‘free’? Or is it unjust and unstable? And what about today’s
global capitalism?
Answers to these questions and many more are sought through analysing the life
of this world-shaping idea and of the writings of leading thinkers such as Adam Smith,
Milton Friedman, Francis Fukuyama, John Maynard Keynes and Karl Marx.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Chapter One: How To Think About Capitalism
Chapter Two: Capitalism as a System: Natural and Free
Chapter Three: Capitalism as a System: Unjust and Unstable
Chapter Four: Empire and Crises 1870-1945
Chapter Five: Post-1945 Capitalism:Variations Across Countries
Chapter Six: Post-1945 Capitalism:Variations Over Time
Chapter Seven: Global Capitalism
References
192 pages, Paperback