GALBRAITH AND CAPITALISM IN AMERICA

The French political scientist, Alex deToqueville, visited the United States almost 200 hundred years ago for the rare opportunity of examining a foundling nation in an isolated system. America had adopted a political system greatly influenced by European philosophical thought and which could be nurtured free of outside factors like invasion or warfare. Similarly, the economics of free trade were implemented in this isolated system, which developed into America's unique form of capitalism. In The Affluent Society (1958), John Kenneth Galbraith examines American capitalism not only though current trends but also through historical evidence, and concludes that it failed because of the unequal distribution of wealth among is stratified classes.

Adam Smith (1723-1790) is the first early economist Galbraith discusses as a shaper of today's economy and society. The time of Smith's writings was dominated by the great political and economic influence of Britain and France. These two superpowers pursued an economic system of government regulation which later became known as mercantilism. A nation would theoretically amass resources in the form of raw materials from its colonies to be used for production in the mother country. Furthermore, it was necessary to export a great deal more than competitor nations and implement governmental tariffs to attain a favorable balance of trade. In opposition to m

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ufferings of the weak: Public aid to the needy and even public sanction tended to perpetuate the more vulnerable members of the race. (Gambs, 107-108) Spencer's opposition to public services reinforces Galbraith's criticisms in The Affluent Society about the lack of public services in America. In light of these historical perspectives and economic doctrines, Galbraith has adequately prepared the reader to understand the nature of economics in America. John Kenneth Galbraith first entered the field of economics as an agricultural economist and could never come to terms with the persistence of widespread rural poverty in the United States, the most affluent nation and the breadbasket of the world (Pratson, 51). At the time he wrote The Affluent Society, Americans were enjoying the euphoria of general prosperity. It was a post-war era which gave rise to many wants that had gone unfulfilled during World War II and the Korean War. Politically, McCarthyism and the reaffirmation of the American system left many satisfied with a deeply stratified society, and the idea of a classless system was frowned upon. As a result of the wars' pent up demand, production operated at capacity, leaving the market saturated with l
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Approximate Word count = 2387
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page)