The Great Transformation, by Karl Polanyi commented by Daniel Francisco
This dimension of the "FEUC 50 years" program results from an invitation to teachers to comment on reference books on economic and social thought. FEUC faculty members' comments are available on video on the dates indicated.
The Great Transformation (Karl Polanyi)
England was not transformed by the steam engine alone, nor by the earlier expansion of world trade and the agricultural revolution. The Great Transformation consisted in the extension of the market system to all spheres of human life. That is, supply and demand began to determine the allocation and remuneration of production factors such as land (nature) and labor (that is, the very use of human life). Thus, Polanyi demonstrated how, first, national and international markets were formed historically, and then how they moved from a configuration characterized by free exchange to another, marked by intense political and social control, in reaction to the great crisis of 1929.
April 19, 2023
Commentator: Daniel Francisco