Discussion Post #2: Slavery’s Capitalism Edited By Sven Beckert and Seth Rockman


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Slavery’s Capitalism: A New History of American Economic Development

Edited by Sven Beckert and Seth Rockman

In this collection of essays, Sven Beckert and Seth Rockman re-framed the development of American capitalism as being predominantly founded on slavery, not just in the United States but in the world (1). In the introduction, the editors argue that there has been much scholarship done concerning the political ramifications of slavery, but little about the economic traditions that were rooted in enslavement (1). In contrast, many historians have sought to explain the evolution of the market economy elsewhere, believing that slavery was actually an inefficient method of labor and that capitalism could have developed without slavery (3, 32). Yet, these chapters show that slavery was not only a factor in the development of the American market economy, but the absolute foundation, without which, the United States would not have had enough capital to expand. Moreover, this book challenges that slavery was regional, limited to the South, and demonstrates that slavery was a national issue, that has led to present day ramifications even resulting in talks of reparations (6-9).

One interesting facet to this book was the focus on science and technology in regards to slavery. One would think slavery and the process of enslavement to be quite antiquated and backwards, but in fact, the plantation owners were progressive in their methods. Plantations appeared to have much more in common with big business and modern corporations, keeping records and statistics, such as depreciation, insurance, and credit (17, 27, 63). Much like dshanebeck, I also found that Edward Baptist’s article, “Toward a Political Economy of Slave Labor,” highlighted the various calculations that went into producing cotton, such as setting quotas in order to force the slaves to work harder in order to avoid punishments (35). He also emphasizes the direct connection between the fields and the textile industries highlighting a more mechanized and organized view of slavery (32). In Caitlin Rosenthal’s chapter, “Slavery’s Scientific Management,” she gives a very systematic view of this process, and shows how slavery was not the antithesis of modernity but rather a propellant for it (62). In a fairly perverse meaning, she describes how slave owners would calculate the decreasing value of their slaves into figuring out their “human capital” (79-80).

Finally, I also found John Majewski’s piece compelling, probably due to my place in the public education system. Again, like other authors, he emphasized the technological sophistication of the south and how slavery was beneficial for all parts of the United States, as dshanebeck already stated (278). However, he contrasts the flourishing public education system in the north and the weaker system in the south, which provided concern for the spread of intellectual ideas (279). In actuality, there was nothing stopping slavery from spreading to places like Ohio that had similar climates to the Limestone South (282). If slavery would have spread, it would have undone the progress of education by allowing the slave holders to choose the pace for public education (298). I found Majewski’s article particularly interesting for his use of sources and evidence types. He used soil comparisons to show the similarities of Southern soil to other parts of the United States but also used records of school funds and school reports. Moreover, I have heard many different reasons for northern aversion to the institution of slavery but the desire to keep public education out of the hands of southerners is definitely a new one.

Overall, I think this text successfully looks at the many different ways slavery bolstered the United States market economy and pushed America into being an industrialized nation. This scholarship adds another dimension to a subject that has already has had much review.