The Acquisitive Society
by R. H. Tawney
Assigned by 1 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- 1920
- Form
- Political theory
- Language
- English
- Length
- Short · 190 ppunder 120 pages
- Difficulty
- Demanding3 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendThe Acquisitive SocietyDover, 2004An affordable reprint of the 1920 text.
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An essay by an English economic historian and Christian socialist, expanded from a Fabian pamphlet. Tawney argues that modern industrial society is acquisitive, organised around rights to property and income without regard to the functions they serve, and that this makes it both unjust and unstable. He proposes instead a functional society in which industry is treated as a profession, ownership is tied to service, and the standard of conduct is the purpose an activity serves rather than the wealth it yields. Chapters treat property, the nostrum of productivity, the vice of the industrial system and the position of the brain worker.
No reading guide yet
The catalogue entry above is complete: the dates, the form, the themes and every program that assigns The Acquisitive Society are verified against each program's published list.
What is missing is the part that takes real work: the summary, the key passages, and a recommended translation. The edition named below is the one most programs assign, so the buy links are useful already.
