Slavery's Capitalism

A New History of American Economic Development

By: Sven Beckert - editor, Seth Rockman - editor

Narrated by: William Hughes, Kevin Kenerly, Bahni Turpin, Pam Ward, Ron Butler

During the 19th century, the United States entered the ranks of the world's most advanced and dynamic economies. At the same time, the nation sustained an expansive and brutal system of human bondage. This was no mere coincidence. Slavery's Capitalism argues for slavery's centrality to the emergence of American capitalism in the decades between the Revolution and the Civil War. According to editors Sven Beckert and Seth Rockman, the issue is not whether slavery itself was or was not capitalist but rather the impossibility of understanding the nation's spectacular pattern of economic development without situating slavery front and center. American capitalism - renowned for its celebration of market competition, private property, and the self-made man - has its origins in an American slavery predicated on the abhorrent notion that human beings could be legally owned and compelled to work under force of violence.

Drawing on the expertise of 16 scholars who are at the forefront of rewriting the history of American economic development, Slavery's Capitalism identifies slavery as the primary force driving key innovations in entrepreneurship, finance, accounting, management, and political economy that are too often attributed to the so-called free market. Approaching the study of slavery as the originating catalyst for the Industrial Revolution and modern capitalism casts new light on American credit markets, practices of offshore investment, and understandings of human capital. Rather than seeing slavery as outside the institutional structures of capitalism, the essayists recover slavery's importance to the American economic past and prompt enduring questions about the relationship of market freedom to human freedom.

Contributors: Edward E. Baptist, Sven Beckert, Daina Ramey Berry, Kathryn Boodry, Alfred L. Brophy, Stephen Chambers, Eric Kimball, John Majewski, Bonnie Martin, Seth Rockman, Daniel B. Rood, Caitlin Rosenthal, Joshua D. Rothman, Calvin Schermerhorn, Andrew Shankman, and Craig Steven Wilder.

Download the accompanying reference guide.©2016 University of Pennsylvania Press (P)2017 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

good book editor should do his/her freaking job

cheaper 32 the reader repeatedly calls the rothschild's the rothshields. Maybe that is some different pronunciation of Rothschild I have never heard before. luckily that particular reader isn't on very long. please get people that know something about the subject to read and listen to the book before you publish it.

The Truth shall set you free

An important work, explaining how we got in this mess, the foundation of our political culture

Interesting read

Amazing book which introduces many concepts, fundamental to American history, that few people are aware of.

There were a few chapters somewhere in the middle of the book about financing that were a bit to statistics focused in my opinion.

Overall, definitely a book that I will come back to for future research.

The truth about America's economic power

The school history classes will not explore the depths of America's capitalism and the detrimental effects of slavery. This book is throught provoking, makes the reader angry, and brings tears to moments of how cruel humanity can be for profit. There is so much research in this book that I will have to listen and read it about three times to get a better understanding of the rich content.

American History

The very people who call us (Black Americans) lazy and barbaric, and who proclaim to be better than us, have proven for centuries, that they are not, in fact better than us.
Thank you, Mr. Beckert and Mr. Rockman, for sharing these truths about slavery...American History.

SLAVERY built American prosperity!

An important treatsiie on the central role of human bondage in America's rise to power.

"Read it, white people"

This should be taught in every history and economics class in the US. Incredibly important for anyone, but especially white people, to read.

A missing piece

Few of us think about the degree to which the US economy depended on slavery; it's a sad indictment of capitalism world-wide. Naturally, this sort of information has not exactly been promoted.

Excellent history!

I learned a lot about the nationwide/worldwide ramifications of the slave economy from this book. Why don’t they teach this in school? Oh, that’s right. They don’t want whites to feel guilty.

Enlightening!

Very little non-academic readings exists on this subject. This book offers a comprehensive set of facts illustrating the importance of slavery in America’s economic development. The materials are also clear and easily understood.