Capitalism And Commerce In Imaginative Literature

This multidisciplinary collection of essays provides a means to appreciate the richness and variety of fictional portrayals of businesses and businesspersons. The works selected for examination reflect the variety of philosophical, political, economic, cultural, social, and ethical perspectives that have been found in American society over time.

In Austrian economic thought, “human action” guides all social and cultural experience. For both the real world and for fictional texts, this starting point can illuminate literature in new ways and offer valuable insight for literary critics who have previously been beholden to Marxism and other anti-capitalist perspectives. In Re-Reading Economics in Literature: A Capitalist Critical Perspective, Matt Spivey posits that in its relationship to literature, Austrian economic criticism entails a methodology that embraces the following: 1) an analytical reading that promotes both the individual artist as the creator of literature and the individual reader as the consumer of literature; 2) an understanding of the entrepreneurial quality of literature, that capitalism is a system that embraces creativity and evolution in the marketplace; and 3) a recognition of subjective value as fundamental to human choice and action, both in art and in the real world. In addition to the study of the individual, Spivey also incorporates the concepts of business cycles, government intervention, social dynamics, and technological evolution in his analysis. Scholars of literary studies and economics will find this book particularly useful.

The Moral Case for Profit Maximization argues that profit maximization is moral when businessmen seek to maximize profit by creating goods or services that are of objective value. Traditionally, profit maximization has been defended on economic grounds. Profit, economists argue, incentivizes businessmen to produce goods and services. In this view, businessmen do not need to be virtuous as long as they deliver the goods. It challenges the traditional defense of profit maximization, arguing that profit maximization is morally ambitious because it requires businessmen to form normative abstractions and to cultivate a virtuous character. In so doing, the author also challenges the moral basis of corporate social responsibility. Proponents of CSR argue that businessmen can do good while doing well. This book argues that businessmen already do good by maximizing profit, drawing upon the histories of the wheel, the refrigerator, and the shipping container, as well as the biographies of J. P. Morgan, John D. Rockefeller, and Thomas Edison to demonstrate the role of values in the creation of material goods and the role of the virtues in value creation. The author challenges readers to rethink the relationship between profit, value, and virtue.

Global Economics: A Holistic Approach integrates real world examples and case studies with economic analysis to examine the emerging global economy. It covers topics not typically considered by international economics, such as migration, in addition to taking a fresh approach to traditional topics.

What are individual rights? What is freedom? How are they related to each other? Why are they so crucial to human life? How do you protect them? These are some of the questions that A Declaration and Constitution for a Free Society answers. The book uses Objectivist philosophy—the philosophy of Ayn Rand—to analyze subjective, intrinsic, and objective theories of rights and show why rights and freedom are objective necessities of human life. This knowledge is then used to make changes to the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution. Through these changes, the book shows the fundamental legal requirements of a free society and why we should create such a society. It demonstrates why a free society is morally, politically, and economically beneficial to human beings.

Ayn Rand wrote and lectured on economic concepts and topics. This volume addresses the economic and business aspects of her writings. The authors of this anthology are from a variety of fields and all of them are enthusiastic supporters of her ideas.

Pride and Profit explores the ways in which Jane Austen’s novels interact with the ideas of economist Adam Smith. Bohanon and Vachris show how Smithian perspectives on virtue are depicted in Austen’s novels and how Smith’s and Austen’s perspectives reflect and define the bourgeois culture of the Enlightenment and industrial revolution.

Kathleen Touchstone applies the philosophies of Objectivism, rule-utilitarianism, and neo-Aristotelianism to strategies of risk management. She proposes a risk index model which accounts for probability, virtue, and consequences, utilizing philosophical insight into the gauging of success.