The Origin of Capitalism

A Longer View

By: Ellen Meiksins Wood

Narrated by: Jo Anna Perrin

How did the dynamic economic system we know as capitalism develop among the peasants and lords of feudal Europe?

In The Origin of Capitalism, a now-classic work of history, Ellen Meiksins Wood offers a clear and accessible introduction to the theories and debates concerning the birth of capitalism, imperialism, and the modern nation state. Capitalism is not a natural and inevitable consequence of human nature, nor simply an extension of age-old practices of trade and commerce. Rather, it is a late and localized product of very specific historical conditions, which required great transformations in social relations and in the relationship between humans and nature.

©1999 Monthly Review Press; 2002, 2017 by Ellen Meiksins Wood (P)2021 Tantor

Exquisite

This really is an advanced academic text. If you’ve never read an economics book before, this is not the place to start. It is however, a cogent, well researched, and logically sound history of the social and legal ideologies and circumstances that led to the creation of capitalism.

Interesting Read

Whilst I enjoyed this book, it was not as clear-cut as the title suggests.

I did have to rework some of the chapters to find what I was looking for.

AND I DO RECOMMEND THIS BOOK.

Useful information? Yes.

Could this have been an essay? Also, yes. The narrator was lovely, though, and did a great job.

Excellent analysis, very irritating narrator

As a lay person with no economics education, I found this book extremely well written and well explained. Also very well supported with historic references. However, the narration was terrible. The narrator spoke in a sing-song voice, adding emphasis in random places, with the emphasis totally unrelated to the meaning of the sentence. Hard to listen to.

Highly informative--not one for the uninitiated, however

I did find this one overall to be insightful and educational, though, as I said in the header, it's not beginner-friendly. Although I'd say I have amateur knowledge on the terminology and subject, I floundered at points throughout my listening time and found myself lost on multiple occasions. Still, even as a beginner with pedestrian-level understanding of economic theory, it was illuminating nevertheless and one I'd recommend overall to those with even slight interest or curiosity.