Interview with Sophia Rosenfeld, author of 'The Age of Choice: A History of Freedom in Modern Life' (Princeton University Press)

What does it mean to be free?

Today we tend to think freedom means having more choices—more products to buy, more careers to pursue, more partners to date, more opinions to hold. But this idea is surprisingly new.

In this episode, historian Sophia Rosenfeld joins the podcast to discuss her book The Age of Choice, which traces how modern societies came to equate freedom with individual choice.

We explore how everyday practices—shopping, reading, dating, and voting—helped create the modern idea of the “choosing self.” Along the way, we discuss the promises and limits of choice, the role of women in the history of modern freedom, and why the ideal of choice may now be reaching its limits.

Topics include:- How consumer culture helped create the idea of personal choice- The history of choosing beliefs and opinions- Why romantic relationships reveal the limits of freedom-as-choice- How voting became a form of individual selection- The role of psychology and economics in defining the “rational chooser”- Whether modern societies have too much choiceThis conversation explores one of the most powerful ideas shaping modern life: that freedom means choosing for yourself.

------Javier Mejia is a Stanford University lecturer who specializes in the intersection of social networks and economic history. His research interests also include entrepreneurship and political economy, with a particular focus on Latin America and the Middle East. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Los Andes University. Mejia has previously been a Postdoctoral Associate and Lecturer at New York University-Abu Dhabi and a Visiting Scholar at the University of Bordeaux. He is also a frequent contributor to various news outlets, currently serving as an op-ed columnist for Forbes Magazine.Twitter (X): https://twitter.com/JavierMejiaCInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/javier_mejia_c/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/javier-mejia-cubillos-64504562/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3WqEZXavqg3qstoLKwtllF?si=589f4216d414448fApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-economic-and-political-history-podcast/id1708348817

Interview with Sven Beckert, author of 'Capitalism: A Global History' (Penguin Random House)Rather than treating capitalism as a natural or inevitable system, Beckert traces its emergence over the past millennium—showing how capitalism arose unevenly, through global connections, state power, coercion, and conflict.We discuss capitalism as a historical rupture, the idea of “islands of capital,” the role of merchants before capitalism fully existed, the necessity of the state, Europe’s divergence without Eurocentrism, the relationship between capitalism and the Industrial Revolution, resistance and rebellion, and what history can tell us about capitalism’s future.This conversation is for anyone interested in political economy, economic history, globalization, and the long-run forces that shaped the modern world.Topics covered:– What makes capitalism historically unique– Why capitalism emerged globally, not nationally– The role of the state in capitalist development– Capitalism and the Industrial Revolution– Crisis, reconstruction, and survival– Is capitalism inevitable—or transformable?Javier Mejia is a Stanford University lecturer who specializes in the intersection of social networks and economic history. His research interests also include entrepreneurship and political economy, with a particular focus on Latin America and the Middle East. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Los Andes University. Mejia has previously been a Postdoctoral Associate and Lecturer at New York University-Abu Dhabi and a Visiting Scholar at the University of Bordeaux. He is also a frequent contributor to various news outlets, currently serving as an op-ed columnist for Forbes Magazine.Twitter (X): https://twitter.com/JavierMejiaCInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/javier_mejia_c/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/javier-mejia-cubillos-64504562/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3WqEZXavqg3qstoLKwtllF?si=589f4216d414448fApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-economic-and-political-history-podcast/id1708348817

Interview with Jason Jackson, author of 'Traders, Speculators, and Captains of Industry' (Harvard University Press)We discuss:• Why standard explanations of Indian economic policy fall short• The rise of Indian economic nationalism and its internal paradoxes• How technology, joint ventures, and industrial policy became moral questions• The expulsion of Coca-Cola and what it symbolized• “Cowboy multinationals,” “one-night stands,” and capitalist legitimacy• What India reveals about capitalism as a moral and political system• Why these debates matter even more in today’s fractured global economyThis conversation is not just about India—it’s about how states everywhere decide who deserves to be a capitalist.

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Javier Mejia is a Stanford University lecturer who specializes in the intersection of social networks and economic history. His research interests also include entrepreneurship and political economy, with a particular focus on Latin America and the Middle East. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Los Andes University. Mejia has previously been a Postdoctoral Associate and Lecturer at New York University-Abu Dhabi and a Visiting Scholar at the University of Bordeaux. He is also a frequent contributor to various news outlets, currently serving as an op-ed columnist for Forbes Magazine.

Twitter (X): https://twitter.com/JavierMejiaC

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/javier_mejia_c/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/javier-mejia-cubillos-64504562/