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Capitalism vs. Socialism: Comparing Economic Systems
Ever since we produced our course Thinking About Capitalism, customers have expressed interest in a follow-up course that could help them understand socialism in the same way. After much consideration, we determined that it actually would be more beneficial to create a course that compares and contrasts the two major global economic theories, examining them in ways that move past the polemics many of us are used to and looking at these systems as they relate to one another and the world at large.
Politics and economics are inextricable, so it can be difficult to find the right person to tackle such a complex and often polarizing subject as objectively as possible. Luckily, we found Professor Edward Stuart, an economist and teacher who specializes in comparative economics. Professor Stuart brings not only economic expertise, but personal experience gleaned from teaching, traveling, and consulting all over the world, and it is this wide lens of experience that helps make Capitalism vs. Socialism such an engaging new entry in our library of courses.
Politics and economics are inextricable, so it can be difficult to find the right person to tackle such a complex and often polarizing subject as objectively as possible. Luckily, we found Professor Edward Stuart, an economist and teacher who specializes in comparative economics. Professor Stuart brings not only economic expertise, but personal experience gleaned from teaching, traveling, and consulting all over the world, and it is this wide lens of experience that helps make Capitalism vs. Socialism such an engaging new entry in our library of courses.
280 pages, Audible Audio
Published March 31, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
November 25, 2025
تماشای این کورس بسیاری از اختلافنظرهای چپ و راست ایرانی را حل میکرد و آن وقت دعوای این دو مثل حالا به تکرار مدام ضعیفترین استدلال حریف ختم نمیشد.
غالب چپها اقتصاد را قبول ندارند، بنابراین این کورس میتواند بهشان نشان دهد که چه متر و معیارهای کمیای در علم اقتصاد برای سنجش موفقیت یا عدم موفقیت هر آنچه کیفی است به وجود آمده که رسیدن به جواب مشخص را آسان میکند. در ضمن مثالهای فراوانی را مشاهده خواهند کرد که بابتشان شرمنده خواهند کرد، نه فقط در سطح شوروی و چین مائو، بلکه حتی برداشتهای غلطی که از سوسیال-دموکراسیهای اروپایی دارند هم زیر سوال خواهد رفت.
راستها هم میتوانند درسهای واقعگرایانهای بگیرند؛ مثل این که هیچ کشاورزیای در دنیا به طور کامل به بازار واگذار نشده؛ مثلا در امریکا دولت یک سوبسید برق به برخی مزارع میدهد و غیره؛ یا این که در ببرهای آسیا، دولت همچنان یک سری خط و خطوطی به بازار آزاد میدهد و حمایتهای خاصی میکند از صنایعی که قابلیت رقابت در بازار جهانی دارند.
غالب چپها اقتصاد را قبول ندارند، بنابراین این کورس میتواند بهشان نشان دهد که چه متر و معیارهای کمیای در علم اقتصاد برای سنجش موفقیت یا عدم موفقیت هر آنچه کیفی است به وجود آمده که رسیدن به جواب مشخص را آسان میکند. در ضمن مثالهای فراوانی را مشاهده خواهند کرد که بابتشان شرمنده خواهند کرد، نه فقط در سطح شوروی و چین مائو، بلکه حتی برداشتهای غلطی که از سوسیال-دموکراسیهای اروپایی دارند هم زیر سوال خواهد رفت.
راستها هم میتوانند درسهای واقعگرایانهای بگیرند؛ مثل این که هیچ کشاورزیای در دنیا به طور کامل به بازار واگذار نشده؛ مثلا در امریکا دولت یک سوبسید برق به برخی مزارع میدهد و غیره؛ یا این که در ببرهای آسیا، دولت همچنان یک سری خط و خطوطی به بازار آزاد میدهد و حمایتهای خاصی میکند از صنایعی که قابلیت رقابت در بازار جهانی دارند.
June 13, 2022
Some aspects of this were thought-provoking for me, but mostly I was a little aggravated. The thing that annoys me the most about those who try to make comparisons between Capitalism and Socialism is how they DON'T make any comparisons at all, leaving the person who asked still just as lost on the subject. They just go on and on about the history involved.
Stop!
Stop talking about how these systems began and their cultural influence. We get it. Those lessons have been regurgitated a million times. When someone asks you to compare the two economic systems, actually explain how the policies differ between the two. Get right down to the root of it. Stop telling me what Lenin's favorite colour was or whatever. Stop telling me about F.D.R's family life. I don't care. Explain the difference between Capitalism and Socialism, please. I'm still waiting for someone to tackle the subject with an actual analysis of their policies and how they could be implemented around the world today. Everything from Health Care to Housing Markets. Stop talking about the Cuban Missile Crisis for absolutely no reason.
Every book or article I read that attempts to answer this famous question does the same thing. Speak to the reader as if the history does not exist at all. I know that sounds crazy, but bear with me. Speak to the reader as if both of these systems are competing to be introduced to the world for the very first time. Put them both under a microscope and make them fight to the death for public approval, based only on their foundational policies. Stop with the historical regurgitation. It does nothing to convince me you know what you're talking about. I'm interested in the validity of the economics, not the social past involved with either system.
Stop!
Stop talking about how these systems began and their cultural influence. We get it. Those lessons have been regurgitated a million times. When someone asks you to compare the two economic systems, actually explain how the policies differ between the two. Get right down to the root of it. Stop telling me what Lenin's favorite colour was or whatever. Stop telling me about F.D.R's family life. I don't care. Explain the difference between Capitalism and Socialism, please. I'm still waiting for someone to tackle the subject with an actual analysis of their policies and how they could be implemented around the world today. Everything from Health Care to Housing Markets. Stop talking about the Cuban Missile Crisis for absolutely no reason.
Every book or article I read that attempts to answer this famous question does the same thing. Speak to the reader as if the history does not exist at all. I know that sounds crazy, but bear with me. Speak to the reader as if both of these systems are competing to be introduced to the world for the very first time. Put them both under a microscope and make them fight to the death for public approval, based only on their foundational policies. Stop with the historical regurgitation. It does nothing to convince me you know what you're talking about. I'm interested in the validity of the economics, not the social past involved with either system.
February 21, 2025
(Edit: I've been thinking this over the last couple of days and decided to drop the rating to 3 stars. I feel like Stuart was a little soft on the downfalls of socialism, focusing mostly on the higher rate of taxes and not much else. This is still a good tool to use to introduce people to these concepts if they're not already familiar with them, or only think they are because of rhetoric and propaganda.)
A very comprehensive history of these two economic systems. In all the arguments against Communism I've heard, usually with the USSR as the prime example, no one has ever pointed out the fact that they started communism from rock bottom and how that would impact its performance.
He goes over the goods and bad of both systems. Being from America, I'm well aware of the benefits and abuses of capitalism - and I'd argue we haven't had true capitalism in this country since Reagan started knocking down many of the safeguards to corporate greed and abuse in the 80s - and it's only gotten worse and worse since then. We're currently seeing the results of greed run amok and it's not pretty.
Stuart lived and taught in the USSR for many years and has firsthand knowledge of how communism shaped and was shaped by that country. Sure, everyone had a job, but no one was motivated to perform well, much less outperform anyone else. If you were told to make a 1000 shoes a month, you made a 1000 left shoes all the same size. It was easier and faster.
I noticed many times over the course of the lecture series how his examples of Communist leadership habits mirror what we're seeing in MAGA today. It's been obvious for awhile they've been going down that road, but it was nice to hear the confirmation. If he ever does an update on this lecture series (this came out in 2018), those revisions are going to be wild. How much has changed in just seven years. 🙈
And of course, this covers Socialism, mostly how it exists throughout the EU. I suspect the biggest hurdle for socialism in the US are those high tax rates. The way the current administration is gutting the federal government in the name of saving taxpayer dollars - while spending it to send the POTUS golfing every weekend and finding ways to give the ultra rich more tax cuts and keep their government subsidies - is all you need to know to see why we're nowhere near ready for a system like this. But I do think Stuart was a little soft on the cons of this system. He barely touched on how the NHS decides when it doesn't want to cover certain medical procedures before he was moving on to the next thing, for instance. But there's still no denying that they get a lot more for their tax dollars than we do.
Everyone should have to listen to this in high school economics class, because while Stuart strives to be impartial, there are real lessons to be learned here and applied to our current political climate that my fellow Americans, especially those on the right, need to learn.
A very comprehensive history of these two economic systems. In all the arguments against Communism I've heard, usually with the USSR as the prime example, no one has ever pointed out the fact that they started communism from rock bottom and how that would impact its performance.
He goes over the goods and bad of both systems. Being from America, I'm well aware of the benefits and abuses of capitalism - and I'd argue we haven't had true capitalism in this country since Reagan started knocking down many of the safeguards to corporate greed and abuse in the 80s - and it's only gotten worse and worse since then. We're currently seeing the results of greed run amok and it's not pretty.
Stuart lived and taught in the USSR for many years and has firsthand knowledge of how communism shaped and was shaped by that country. Sure, everyone had a job, but no one was motivated to perform well, much less outperform anyone else. If you were told to make a 1000 shoes a month, you made a 1000 left shoes all the same size. It was easier and faster.
I noticed many times over the course of the lecture series how his examples of Communist leadership habits mirror what we're seeing in MAGA today. It's been obvious for awhile they've been going down that road, but it was nice to hear the confirmation. If he ever does an update on this lecture series (this came out in 2018), those revisions are going to be wild. How much has changed in just seven years. 🙈
And of course, this covers Socialism, mostly how it exists throughout the EU. I suspect the biggest hurdle for socialism in the US are those high tax rates. The way the current administration is gutting the federal government in the name of saving taxpayer dollars - while spending it to send the POTUS golfing every weekend and finding ways to give the ultra rich more tax cuts and keep their government subsidies - is all you need to know to see why we're nowhere near ready for a system like this. But I do think Stuart was a little soft on the cons of this system. He barely touched on how the NHS decides when it doesn't want to cover certain medical procedures before he was moving on to the next thing, for instance. But there's still no denying that they get a lot more for their tax dollars than we do.
Everyone should have to listen to this in high school economics class, because while Stuart strives to be impartial, there are real lessons to be learned here and applied to our current political climate that my fellow Americans, especially those on the right, need to learn.
February 13, 2019
An entertaining and informative series of lectures focusing on comparative economic systems. Although necessarily lacking in depth, each section brings to life a little history lesson of some of the features of different countries’ economic systems and their objectives.
I would have preferred a more direct discussion about what I consider to be the primary problem with designing an economic system to achieve a human goal: humans. No matter the purity of intent, in application the human spirit will always emerge, and, sadly, not all aspects of the human spirit are noble. Professor Stuart does grasp this and intimates it on several occasions where he posits that no single system is best, but that an adaptive combination of approaches may work if the society in question has clearly defined goals.
I would have preferred a more direct discussion about what I consider to be the primary problem with designing an economic system to achieve a human goal: humans. No matter the purity of intent, in application the human spirit will always emerge, and, sadly, not all aspects of the human spirit are noble. Professor Stuart does grasp this and intimates it on several occasions where he posits that no single system is best, but that an adaptive combination of approaches may work if the society in question has clearly defined goals.
January 3, 2020
This was a good lecture series, although not quite what I was expecting. It gives a good modern history of real-world economic systems, focusing on the degree and kind of government involvement, and covering a wide variety of countries, so that you can compare the elements yourself. It doesn't spend much time walking you through an analysis of the differences, though.
December 3, 2019
Fairly useless. The failures of central planning are catalogued as prescribed. What was the public attitude about centrally planned private corporations at the time? Several American corporations had more capital and a farther reach then ‘Communist’ governments.
There is the usual tendency to equate historical failures of government that self labeled socialist, or communist as directly resulting from political ideology in a way that centerist/capitalist countries are protected from.
It’s unfortunate, because the governmental systems unfairly maligned should have been fairly maligned with more precise criticisms. The inflexibility of system reliant on a cult of personality, incapable of providing suitable solutions to public policy issues, or economic issues, is what destines them to fail.
The differences between political ideologies become, in practice, close to semantic. The more telling aspects of how a political system operates has to do with how much attention is paid to respecting the mandate of the people in constructing pragmatic public policy.
There is the usual tendency to equate historical failures of government that self labeled socialist, or communist as directly resulting from political ideology in a way that centerist/capitalist countries are protected from.
It’s unfortunate, because the governmental systems unfairly maligned should have been fairly maligned with more precise criticisms. The inflexibility of system reliant on a cult of personality, incapable of providing suitable solutions to public policy issues, or economic issues, is what destines them to fail.
The differences between political ideologies become, in practice, close to semantic. The more telling aspects of how a political system operates has to do with how much attention is paid to respecting the mandate of the people in constructing pragmatic public policy.
August 19, 2025
Read the 273 course guidebook and watched the 24 thirty-minute lectures that accompany it. Great learning.
June 2, 2018
I expected Prof. Stuart to talk about how different economies tackle issues such as healthcare, education, taxation, and so on, with a comparative framework. I wanted the professor to describe the pros and cons / tradeoffs / choices made in these economies, leading to insights to questions such as 'what is the best way to deliver healthcare?', 'how best to encourage to innovation?', 'is there a trade off between levels of taxation and economic dynamism?'
I was disappointed after listening to the audio book as Prof. Stuart delivered a country-by-country description with some comparative elements here and there. While the answer to the questions I posted above might have been weaved into the description, the organisation of the course ensures that any comparative sights are lost in the sea of information.
To conclude, while I do not for a second doubt that Prof. Stuart is very knowledgeable, he failed to curate the information in a manner hinted by the subtitle: 'comparing economic systems'. I wish Prof. Stuart had organised the material in a similar vein to another Great Course: Customs of the World
I was disappointed after listening to the audio book as Prof. Stuart delivered a country-by-country description with some comparative elements here and there. While the answer to the questions I posted above might have been weaved into the description, the organisation of the course ensures that any comparative sights are lost in the sea of information.
To conclude, while I do not for a second doubt that Prof. Stuart is very knowledgeable, he failed to curate the information in a manner hinted by the subtitle: 'comparing economic systems'. I wish Prof. Stuart had organised the material in a similar vein to another Great Course: Customs of the World
March 30, 2019
I didn't even get far into this because it was just bad. This is in fact the first Great Courses book that I've encountered that I actively didn't like; the teacher has a boring form of speech, makes bad jokes that aren't even entertaining, and seems to describe extraordinarily basic concepts as if they're revolutionary in a way that is kind of farcical given how simplistic his description is and how little one learns from it. This book alone has broken my trust in the great courses; I regret having bought it and will be more careful with my purchases there in the future.
April 17, 2024
Very informative.
July 26, 2022
As this was the first book I read on economic systems, I had to pause and research after each lecture chapter in the book. All and all, it was informative book.
January 4, 2022
This was more a "history of communism, socialism and capitalism" than a comparative economics class. I would have liked a more in-depth analysis of the economical systems and their comparison, though it was quite interesting.
February 20, 2021
Rock solid 3.5.
I probably would round this up to a 4 if economics was more interesting to me... but being true to myself, it is just not the most gripping subject for me. I do respect its significance and importance... it's just not something I am super passionate about.
Dr. Stuart actually brings a lot to the table with this less than exciting topic, his backstory is really remarkable. His Dad was actually a pilot in WW2 that was shot down, survived, ended up as a Prisoner of War, was about to be executed when the Russian Army liberated his camp, became a Russian Prison of War, and then eventually was released ... met a lady along the way, had a son, and here we have the author of this Great Course. Simply amazing. This guys Dad went through some serious stuff in his life and what a story. Just wow.
What I also really respect about Dr. Stuart is he actually lived and worked in Russia. He was not some silver spoon, priveleged individual that had the whole world given to him and then just talks trash about how bad socialism is... No. He lived and worked there and saw first had its failures, issues, lack of innovation it breeds, abusing the system to hit target numbers versus making a better/more useful product, etc. Again, much respect. Not quite what Dad went through, but still a respectable background for a economist along with his PhD.
The targeted content itself was great. Russia, Germany, US, EU, China, Korea... he hits them all. Karl Marx, Communist Manifesto, tax system, etc. etc. A lot of great knowledge to takeaway from this.
Again, rock solid 3.5 and I would indeed recommend this for sure. If economics is more your thing, this would easily be a 4-5 I am sure for you.
I probably would round this up to a 4 if economics was more interesting to me... but being true to myself, it is just not the most gripping subject for me. I do respect its significance and importance... it's just not something I am super passionate about.
Dr. Stuart actually brings a lot to the table with this less than exciting topic, his backstory is really remarkable. His Dad was actually a pilot in WW2 that was shot down, survived, ended up as a Prisoner of War, was about to be executed when the Russian Army liberated his camp, became a Russian Prison of War, and then eventually was released ... met a lady along the way, had a son, and here we have the author of this Great Course. Simply amazing. This guys Dad went through some serious stuff in his life and what a story. Just wow.
What I also really respect about Dr. Stuart is he actually lived and worked in Russia. He was not some silver spoon, priveleged individual that had the whole world given to him and then just talks trash about how bad socialism is... No. He lived and worked there and saw first had its failures, issues, lack of innovation it breeds, abusing the system to hit target numbers versus making a better/more useful product, etc. Again, much respect. Not quite what Dad went through, but still a respectable background for a economist along with his PhD.
The targeted content itself was great. Russia, Germany, US, EU, China, Korea... he hits them all. Karl Marx, Communist Manifesto, tax system, etc. etc. A lot of great knowledge to takeaway from this.
Again, rock solid 3.5 and I would indeed recommend this for sure. If economics is more your thing, this would easily be a 4-5 I am sure for you.
January 4, 2021
This was not the rather polemic diatribe in favor of Capitalism or Socialism that I feared it could devolve into. Instead, Edward Stuart provides a nuanced, thoughtful, exploration of the choices that modern economies have made in choosing how to handle many problems related to the economy and the physical welfare of their citizens. In doing so, he explores with great even handedness the origins of capitalist and socialist theories and how those theories have been applied in a remarkable number of countries around the world, using issues like health care to show the different approaches countries have tried and laying out the benefits and problems that resulted in each of the cases. Capitalism and Socialism are terms that get thrown around a lot. You’ll have a much finer understanding of how they actually play into modern economic and political debates after reading this book.
If you liked this review, you can find more at www.gilbertstack.com/reviews.
If you liked this review, you can find more at www.gilbertstack.com/reviews.
July 22, 2018
Very nice overview of what works and what doesn't in many systems in many positions in the capitalism/socialism spectrum. Personally, the main take-aways were:
1. There is no right answer that fits all peoples in all societies. Historical and cultural factors play a huge role.
2. There is no purely free market nor instances of true marxist regime left in the world. All systems are hybrid.
3. Contrasting socialism with democracy may not make sense (and it's controversial whether dictatorships are inherent to socialist/communist regimes -- they are definitely not exclusive to them!). There are many democratic countries on the socialist end of the spectrum and they are doing just fine.
1. There is no right answer that fits all peoples in all societies. Historical and cultural factors play a huge role.
2. There is no purely free market nor instances of true marxist regime left in the world. All systems are hybrid.
3. Contrasting socialism with democracy may not make sense (and it's controversial whether dictatorships are inherent to socialist/communist regimes -- they are definitely not exclusive to them!). There are many democratic countries on the socialist end of the spectrum and they are doing just fine.
July 12, 2023
This audio book is 12 hours lectures .
I'll give it 2 out of 5 cause I thought that it will give me a deep new knowledge about the difference between these two systms ( for instance, the pros and cons for each system, how will be the interact between them regardless the historic situation aspects , optimum way for integration between the two systems and the possibility of introducing ideas for a new established unique system that can be adopted by the whole world or at least can be accepted that will have a positive and productive impacts on the peoples life) rather than just telling the historic facts that was already known
I'll give it 2 out of 5 cause I thought that it will give me a deep new knowledge about the difference between these two systms ( for instance, the pros and cons for each system, how will be the interact between them regardless the historic situation aspects , optimum way for integration between the two systems and the possibility of introducing ideas for a new established unique system that can be adopted by the whole world or at least can be accepted that will have a positive and productive impacts on the peoples life) rather than just telling the historic facts that was already known
November 8, 2023
I came to this book because I keep hearing terms like ‘marxist’ ‘socialist’ ‘capitalist’ etc. used like insults! I never studied economics in school, so I didn’t have much context to question this in conversation.
My biggest takeaway from this book is that different economies are successful in different ways! It’s a matter of priorities more than anything. I especially enjoyed learning about mixed economies like Sweden’s.
My biggest takeaway from this book is that different economies are successful in different ways! It’s a matter of priorities more than anything. I especially enjoyed learning about mixed economies like Sweden’s.
May 11, 2024
It was very good. I really really enjoyed it. He did a great job of making complicated macro economic concepts much simpler. I understood the gold standard much better now. I appreciated the comparisons he made across countries and economies. He has met a lot of interesting people in his life too.
At times I felt a bit inundated with history - especially about East and West Germany. I wasn’t sure where it was going or why it was relevant, so I didn’t enjoy that as much.
At times I felt a bit inundated with history - especially about East and West Germany. I wasn’t sure where it was going or why it was relevant, so I didn’t enjoy that as much.
January 8, 2025
I made it almost halfway through before dropping this course. As others have pointed out, this course is not about economics at all, but rather the history of a few economic systems. The professor does nothing to actually discuss or compare the systems themselves and focuses far too much on people and events rather than the merits of ideas.
This course's title is misleading and it should be filed under history, not economics & finance.
This course's title is misleading and it should be filed under history, not economics & finance.
June 17, 2020
As you'll read about in the other reviews, this lecture series is not a discussion or debate between capitalism and socialism. It's a history of modern economics systems starting with the philosophies that gave birth to them, how they were implemented, and where they are today. It's worth listening to if you're interested in the topic.
January 23, 2019
There was more history than economics in this book, in my opinion, and the professor repeated himself quite a bit from one lecture to another, so it's not an ideal binge-listening option, but it was interesting.
April 7, 2020
There is little in the way of comparison provided by the lecturer though he offers plenty of historical detail for the listener to draw their own conclusions. It might be better called A History of Economic Models and their Development.
February 18, 2019
Good overview, but too much repetition.
January 29, 2021
Fun but a bit too simplistic for those with some knowledge of economics. I found it fitting that I finished this series during what I will preemptively call The Great Short Fiasco of 2021.
July 18, 2021
The existing content was interesting, but was far more "basic history of communism in the former USSR" than what it says on the tin.
September 26, 2021
Really enjoyed the sections on Germany both historically and currently. I want to dive deeper into German economic history.
April 25, 2022
I listened to this on Audible. Clearly laid out and easy to follow lecture series. I enjoyed it and would recommend.
July 10, 2022
These lectures are well done and provide a college-level understanding of the history, benefits, drawbacks, and genesis of each economic system.
July 20, 2022
Good review of economics and why different countries are the way they are today.
August 31, 2024
A good read, enjoyed the history.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews