Karl Polanyi Books
Karl Polanyi (1886–1964) was a Hungarian economic historian, anthropologist, and social theorist. His interdisciplinary work bridged economics, sociology, and history, and he is best known for his critique of market liberalism and his analysis of the social foundations of economic systems.
Known for: The Great Transformation: The Political and Economic Origins of Our Time
Books by Karl Polanyi
The Great Transformation: The Political and Economic Origins of Our Time
Karl Polanyi’s seminal 1944 work examines the rise of the modern market economy and its profound social consequences. He argues that the self-regulating market, far from being a natural development, was a deliberate political project that disrupted traditional social relations and led to economic instability and social dislocation. Polanyi traces the historical transformation from pre-industrial societies to industrial capitalism, emphasizing the tension between market expansion and social protection.
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The Embedded Economy
Long before industrial chimneys darkened the skies of England, before economists spoke of supply and demand, human societies thrived through systems that bore little resemblance to market capitalism. Economic life was not an autonomous sphere governed by prices but was deeply enmeshed in social inst...
From The Great Transformation: The Political and Economic Origins of Our Time
The Rise of Market Society
The decisive break came with the Industrial Revolution in England. It was not a matter of gradual evolution but a true revolution in the organization of society. The enclosure movement—those vast acts of privatization of common lands—transformed the material and moral fabric of rural life. Peasants ...
From The Great Transformation: The Political and Economic Origins of Our Time
About Karl Polanyi
Karl Polanyi (1886–1964) was a Hungarian economic historian, anthropologist, and social theorist. His interdisciplinary work bridged economics, sociology, and history, and he is best known for his critique of market liberalism and his analysis of the social foundations of economic systems.
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Karl Polanyi (1886–1964) was a Hungarian economic historian, anthropologist, and social theorist. His interdisciplinary work bridged economics, sociology, and history, and he is best known for his critique of market liberalism and his analysis of the social foundations of economic systems.
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