The Market System
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What It Is, How It Works, and What To Make of It
Charles E. Lindblom
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In the wake of the collapse of communism, we hear much about the victory of the “market system.” Just what is the market system? This clear and accessible book begins by answering this question, then goes on to explain how the market system works and what it can and cannot do. Charles E. Lindblom, writing in nontechnical language for a wide general audience, offers an evenhanded view of the market system. His analysis of the great questions that surround the market system is sometimes unexpected, always illuminating: Is the market system efficient? Is it democratic? Does it despoil the environment? Does it perpetuate inequalities? Does it debase personality and culture?
Big choices are yet to be made about the future of the market system, observes Lindblom. He outlines what these choices are and how they will affect not only our economic well-being but also our social and political lives. For market systems organize or coordinate more than just the flow of commodities, he shows. They influence human behavior in all its dimensions.
Big choices are yet to be made about the future of the market system, observes Lindblom. He outlines what these choices are and how they will affect not only our economic well-being but also our social and political lives. For market systems organize or coordinate more than just the flow of commodities, he shows. They influence human behavior in all its dimensions.
Charles E. Lindblom is Sterling Professor Emeritus of Economics and Political Science at Yale University. His prize-winning books include Inquiry and Change: The Troubled Attempt to Understand and Shape Society, published by Yale University Press, and Politics and Markets: The World’s Political-Economic Systems.
“The Market System resplendently assesses the character, rules, advantages, and shortcomings of the central institution coordinating modern economic and social life. Deploying more than a half-century of learning and instruction, Lindblom marshals his incisive intellect, uncommon range, and pellucid prose to clarify, probe, and exhort. The result is an unsurpassed guide.”—Ira I. Katznelson, Ruggles Professor of Political Science and History, Columbia University
“We are all vaguely familiar with the market system, where most of us gain our livelihoods and all of us arrange our livings. What we learn from Charles Lindblom’s book is how little we grasp as to how this system really works, both for the better and for worse. Anyone who wants to know more about its plusses and minuses, how government can help or hinder its workings, and the direction in which it is likely to move should read this clear, fair and fascinating book.”—Robert Heilbroner, Professor Emeritus, New School University
"Lindblom offers a balanced and novel treatment of a very important set of questions. This is a book of grand scope by an outstanding scholar."—Samuel Bowles, University of Massachusetts, Amherst University
"This book lays out the case for the market and the case against, fully and fairly. Lindblom’s ideas on the virtues and vices of markets are original and stimulating."—Stephen A. Marglin, Harvard University
“[A]n elegant précis of Lindblom’s lifework. . . . [F]inely balanced.”—George Scialabba, American Prospect
“[H]ighly recommended.”—Choice
“Addressing nothing less than the nature of cooperation in human society, [Lindblom’s] discussion spans history, philosophy and political theory, an unusually multidisciplinary approach for an economics text. . . . Lindblom provides refreshingly few definitive answers, making his the most mild-mannered economics book published in some time, as well as the most cerebral.”—Publishers Weekly
“Lindblom explains what [the] ‘market system’ is, details how it works, makes a strong case for its advantages and keenly outlines some of its limitations. . . . Admirably clear and penetrating, this book deserves to find a broad audience interested in an intellectual approach to economics.”—Publishers Weekly
Selected as an "Outstanding" title in the 2002 AAUP University Press Books for Public and Secondary School Libraries
ISBN: 9780300087529
Publication Date: March 11, 2001
Publication Date: March 11, 2001
304 pages, 5.5 x 8.25
