Rethinking Capitalism in Times of Transition

The articles in this panel tell the stories of individuals with visions of the transformative power of capitalism. Each—a publisher, sociologist, and businessman—sought not only to explain and understand the nature of capitalism as it existed but also to imagine and describe a transformed society. These essays examine the work of these individuals and, more generally, the history of changing ideas about capitalism itself. They contribute to the tradition of entrepreneurial history that dates back at least to the work of the Research Center in Entrepreneurial History in the mid-twentieth century. In 1942, the center’s director Arthur Cole, describe the field of entrepreneurial history as one that was “interested in . . . an entrepreneurial system” rather than simply single business leaders or innovators. All of the individuals described in this panel were interested in economic systems, whether of mercantile capitalism, industrial and post-industrial societies, or free-market capitalism. They also sought to outline the policies and institutions to bring transitions to these economic systems about.