The Rise and Fall of Capitalism

This engaging and intelligent book argues that the unbridled impact of deregulated market forces will lead to social polarization and ultimately to the destruction of capitalist society as we know it today. After providing a lucid and accessible overview of the development of capitalism, Professor Brenner explains how human greed was confined within legal boundaries and shows how ingenuity rather than brute force ultimately became the source of wealth. He explores the interaction between ideas, behaviour and economic change and points out comparisons between scientific ideas and the phases of economic development. He warns that, by an inner logic, deregulated capitalism must necessarily lead to increased inequality and to the waning of those elements in bourgeois culture which are necessary for the proper functioning of a technologically advanced industrial economy.

Written in a lively and non-technical style, the book will appeal not only to economists but also to other social scientists and historians concerned with the history and development of modern capitalist society.