Lecture

Material Civilization, Economy and Capitalism

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In course

AR-367: Environmental histories

Le cours vise à familiariser les étudiants avec l'histoire de l'environnement et des paysages, et avec la façon dont les différentes préoccupations environnementales, qui vont affecter de plus en plus fortement la conception des villes et de l'architecture ...

Description

This lecture explores the historical development of material civilization, economy, and capitalism, focusing on the impact of wood as a foundational resource in early industries, the role of windmills in Dutch civilization, and the consequences of deforestation on industrialization. It delves into the transition from feudal to capitalist economies, the birth of political economy, and the challenges posed by forest degradation and industrialization. The lecture also discusses the evolution of energy regimes, the industrial revolution, and the societal transformations brought about by the market system. Through an analysis of historical events and economic theories, the instructor sheds light on the intricate relationship between technology, energy, and societal progress.

Instructor

Sébastien Jacques Marie Marot

Official source

Ontological neighbourhood

Economics

Microeconomics: Economic systems

Related concepts (28)

Capitalism

Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit. Central characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets, price systems, private property, property rights recognition, voluntary exchange, and wage labor. In a market economy, decision-making and investments are determined by owners of wealth, property, or ability to maneuver capital or production ability in capital and financial markets—whereas prices and the distribution of goods and services are mainly determined by competition in goods and services markets.

State capitalism

State capitalism is an economic system in which the state undertakes business and commercial (i.e. for-profit) economic activity and where the means of production are nationalized as state-owned enterprises (including the processes of capital accumulation, centralized management and wage labor). The definition can also include the state dominance of corporatized government agencies (agencies organized along business-management practices) or of public companies such as publicly listed corporations in which the state has controlling shares.

Market system

A market system (or market ecosystem) is any systematic process enabling many market players to offer and demand: helping buyers and sellers interact and make deals. It is not just the price mechanism but the entire system of regulation, qualification, credentials, reputations and clearing that surrounds that mechanism and makes it operate in a social context. Some authors use the term "market system" to refer to specifically to the free market system.

Free market

In economics, a free market is an economic system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of government or any other external authority. Proponents of the free market as a normative ideal contrast it with a regulated market, in which a government intervenes in supply and demand by means of various methods such as taxes or regulations.

Market economy

A market economy is an economic system in which the decisions regarding investment, production and distribution to the consumers are guided by the price signals created by the forces of supply and demand. The major characteristic of a market economy is the existence of factor markets that play a dominant role in the allocation of capital and the factors of production.

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