Capital and ideology

Hardcover, 1104 pages

English language

Published Oct. 2, 2020

ISBN:
978-0-674-98082-2
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4 stars (1 review)

Capital and Ideology (French: Capital et Idéologie) is a 2019 book by French economist Thomas Piketty. Capital and Ideology follows Piketty's 2013 book Capital in the Twenty-First Century, which focused on wealth and income inequality in Europe and the United States. Described by Piketty as "in large part a sequel" to its predecessor, Capital and Ideology has a wider scope, and Piketty has expressed his preference for the 2019 book. In the book, Piketty outlines potential means of redistributing wealth, and explores historical and contemporary justifications for inequality. Paul Krugman wrote of the book, "In Marxian dogma, a society's class structure is determined by underlying, impersonal forces, technology and the modes of production that technology dictates. Piketty, however, sees inequality as a social phenomenon, driven by human institutions. Institutional change, in turn, reflects the ideology that dominates society: 'Inequality is neither economic nor technological; it is ideological and political.'" Methods …

3 editions

A comprehensive book with a strong Western focus

4 stars

This is a massive tome on the complex interactions between economics and politics and how these interactions lead to different levels of inequality. Piketty provides a broad survey of economic concepts around inequality, as well as an in depth review of shifting political preferences.

The book shines when it's focused on historical trends, particularly the lasting impact of slavery and colonialism both economically and politically. It suffers a bit from an only cursory examination of countries that avoid many of the issues Piketty identifies, such as South Korea and Japan, and far too much time examining trends in France, the UK, and the US. Given Piketty's background this is understandable, but I would've liked those pages swapped for a deeper examination of other topics.

I really liked the shocking histories of Sweden, which went from being one of the most unequal countries of the world (allocating votes based on land …