
With its deep roots & global scope the capitalist system provides the framework for our lives. It is a framework of constant change sometimes measured & predictable sometimes drastic & out of control. Yet what is now ubiquitous was not always so. Capitalism took shape centuries ago starting with a handful of isolated changes in farming trade & manufacturing in early modern Engl&. Astute observers began to notice these changes & consider their effects. Those in power began to harness these new practices to the state enhancing both. A system generating wealth power & new ideas arose to reshape societies in a constant surge of change. The centuries-long history of capitalism is rich & eventful. Approaching capitalism as a culture as important for its ideas & values as for its inventions & systems Joyce Appleby gives us a fascinating introduction to this most potent creation of mankind from its origins to the present.