Freaks of Fortune: The Emerging World of Capitalism and Risk in America

A free-wheeling yet finely targeted history of capitalism and the modern financial industry, this study by Princeton historian Levy revolves around one specific concept%E2%80%94risk%E2%80%94while considering changing notions of liberty, justice, and human agency. Originally a mariners' term for the possibility of a ship's cargo being lost at sea, "risk" became a defining feature of American commercial life as the free market expanded and industrialization radically increased the pace of economic change. Although the casual reader may struggle with the book's specialist terminology and high-level concepts, Levy's humane vision and his extensive knowledge of American law, economics, and politics turn what could have been a dry treatise into a fascinating portrait of a society in flux. The author sheds light on such topics as corporate profit-sharing and the ethical ramifications of futures trading, underscoring the extraordinary power of the "economic chance-world" to create and destroy. Happenstance has always played an enormous role in human life, and the book explores society's reaction to the realization that individuals are increasingly defined by the possibility that their station in life will dramatically rise or fall. (Oct.)