Graduation Year
2022
Date of Submission
4-2022
Document Type
Open Access Senior Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
Philosophy and Public Affairs
Reader 1
Paul Hurley
Terms of Use & License Information
Rights Information
2022 Alejandro Villegas
Abstract
This paper explores the reasons that Hegel and Smith were optimistic about the promise of capitalism. I identify the virtues and characteristics that capitalism would provide in theory which focused on the potential benefits it would have for average person. I then examine capitalism in practice and identify the ways that Hegel and Smith were wrong. I use Henry Hansmann model of the firm and his account of cost, which fits well with the problems I hope to address. With the help of Henry Hansmann’s account of ownership and cost, I offer potential methods to address the failures of the free market. These methods can be separated into two categories: changes in corporate structure or practices and changes in governing institutions or legislation. I primarily use the examples of Amazon and truck drivers to consider how market failures in both industries could be resolved, which hopefully can provide guidance for reforming other parts of our capitalism.
Recommended Citation
Villegas, Alejandro, "A Marxist Re-Imagining of Capitalism" (2022). CMC Senior Theses. 2929.
https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cmc_theses/2929
