Transcending the Economy: On the Potential of Passionate Labor and the Wastes of the Market

by Michael Perelman

"Transcending the Economy" explores the reasons why our economy fails to provide a more fulfilling way of life. Michael Perelman argues that the irrational dominance of markets imposes burdens of needless waste and lost potential, and furthermore, traditional economics is ill-equipped to approach such matters because of its focus on limits rather than potential. As an alternative, Perelman develops Charles Fourier7;s concept of passionate labor. Using examples ranging from wartime selflessness to blood donations and computer programming, he demonstrates that passionate labor has the potential to elevate both human performance and satisfaction well beyond the shallow limits imposed by markets.

Genres: Economics

192 pages, Hardcover

First published May 5, 2000

About the author

Michael Perelman (born October 1, 1939) is an American economist and economic historian, currently professor of economics at California State University, Chico. Perelman has written 19 books, including Railroading Economics, Manufacturing Discontent, The Perverse Economy, and The Invention of Capitalism. A student of economics at the University of Michigan and San Francisco State College, Perelman earned a Ph.D in agricultural economics from the University of California, Berkeley in 1971, under supervision of George Kuznets. Perelman writes that he was drawn away from the "framework of conventional economics," noticing that the agricultural system was "consuming ten times more energy than it was producing in the form of edible food." Perelman's research into how "profit-oriented agricultural system created hunger, pollution, serious public health consequences, and environmental disruption, while throwing millions of people off the land" led to his first book, Farming for Profit in a Hungry World (1977). Perelman continued to write extensively in criticism of conventional or mainstream economics, including in all his books (and especially his books published from 2000 to date), papers and interviews.

Although perceiving flaws in Marx's work as it is typically interpreted in the context of its modern reading, Perelman writes that "Marx’s crisis theory was far more sophisticated than many modern readers had realized," focusing on an interpretation that is largely bypassed by many readers of Marxian economic thought. Perelman views Marxist theory as vindicated through its account of crises that a capitalist economy must inherently generate.

Perelman has appeared on a number of programs, including Media Matters, Pacifica Radio, KPFA 94.1 Berkeley, and WBBR (Bloomberg Radio).

Reviews

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting look at shortcommings of the present system.