Thorstein Veblen
Theorist of the Leisure Class
Will be published approx. on 10. June 1999
Book
Paperback/Softback
310 pages
978-0-691-00654-3 (ISBN)
Description
Fired by Stanford and the University of Chicago but recommended by his peers to the presidency of the American Economic Association, Thorstein Veblen remains a baffling figure in American intellectual history. In part because he was an eccentric who shunned publicity, he has also been one of our most neglected. Veblen is known to the general public only as coiner of the term "conspicuous consumption," and to scholars primarily as one of many social critics of the reform-minded Progressive Era. This important critical biography--originally published as The Bard of Savagery and now appearing in paperback for the first time--attempts both to unravel the riddles that surround his reputation and to assess his varied and important contributions to modern social theory.
Reviews / Votes
"For an understanding of Veblen pivotal importance attaches to Diggins's ... observation that 'Veblen was perhaps the only American social scientist of the nineteenth century who was intellectually prepared to challenge the economic theories of Karl Marx on their own terms.'"--John Walton, Social Science Quarterly "John Diggins ... is exceedingly perceptive in focusing on the role attributed by Veblen to status emulation in the legitimation and reinforcement of power and the hegemony of established institutions and systems."--Warren J. Samuels, Social Science QuarterlyMore details
Edition
Revised edition
Language
English
Place of publication
New Jersey
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
College/higher education
Edition type
Revised edition
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 152 mm
Thickness: 18 mm
Weight
490 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-691-00654-3 (9780691006543)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
04/2022
1st Edition
Princeton University Press
€61.49
Available for download
Person
John Patrick Diggins is Distinguished Professor of History at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. His previous books include Mussolini and Fascism: The View from America, The American Left in the Twentieth Century, Up from Communism: Conservative Odysseys in American Intellectual History, and The Liberal Persuasion: Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., and the Challenge of the American Past (Princeton).
Content
Preface: Social Theory and the Anthropological ImperativeIntroduction to the Paperback EditionList of AbbreviationsPt. 1The Milieu and the Man1Ch. 1Veblen's America3Ch. 2Enter Veblen: "Disturber of the Intellectual Peace"14Ch. 3The Social Scientist as "Stranger"31Pt. 2Theory and History41Ch. 4Economics and the Dilemma of Value Theory43Ch. 5Marx, Veblen, and the "Riddle" of Alienation59Ch. 6Reification, Animism, Emulation: The Cultural Hegemony of Capitalism83Ch. 7Veblen, Weber, and the "Spirit of Capitalism"111Pt. 3Inside the Whale137Ch. 8The Barbarian Status of Women139Ch. 9The Tribes of Academe167Ch. 10America and the World184Ch. 11Disciples and Dissenters: Veblen's Legacy in American Thought and Social Action208Ch. 12Conclusion: Whither Capitalism?225Notes231Index253