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Ha-Joon ChangA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Clarifying that he doesn’t oppose capitalism itself but rather the unfettered, corporate-controlled capitalism of the recent past, Chang offers several principles to assist in a “total re-envisioning of the way we organize our economy and society” (252). Any new system must consider the limits of human rationality while recognizing that people are not motivated solely by self-interest. Instead of assuming that market outcomes are automatically just, economies should account for structural factors that limit individual achievement. Rather than relying primarily on knowledge and service industries, economies (particularly developing ones) should refocus on manufacturing. Financial assets, meanwhile, should be balanced with real sector activities to prevent instability. In all of these areas, the government should be an active participant. Global governing bodies should allow and encourage developing countries to implement the most helpful policies. Following these principles, Chang insists, can alleviate suffering and help economies avoid repeating the mistakes of the past.
In his conclusion, Chang turns his attention from busting myths to a more prescriptive approach, bringing all three of the book’s themes—Deconstructing Free-Market Economics Dogma, The Path Forward for Developing Countries, and Learning from the 2008 Financial Crisis—to a resolution by outlining changes to help capitalist economies thrive and protect them from failure.