The Great Transformation

The prophet who predicted today's crisis of capitalism.

Published toward the end of World War II, Karl Polanyi's The Great Transformation is a relentless attack on the utopian idea of a completely free market. Tracing the history of capitalism from the Industrial Revolution onwards, Polanyi proves that the market has never been—and can never be—separated from society and nature. The attempt to treat land, labor, and money as mere commodities destroys the social fabric and the natural system, inevitably leading to catastrophe. In this classic work of economic history and social theory, Polanyi analyzes the economic and societal upheavals brought by the "great transformation" of the Industrial Revolution, demonstrating that there is nothing "natural" about the free market.

Today, as we witness the return of protectionism, the collapse of the international order, and the rise of populism, Polanyi’s words ring eerily familiar and prophetic. He offers us more than just historical analysis; he provides the key to understanding society’s "emergency brake"—the defensive reaction against unrestrained capitalism.

"One of the most influential books in social sciences ever written. Essential reading." — Thomas Piketty (author of Capital in the Twenty-First Century)

"Polanyi, the 20th century's most prophetic critic of the capitalist 'outlook,' unmasks the myth of the free market." — Joseph Stiglitz (Nobel Laureate in Economics)

"The most prophetic critic of 20th-century capitalism." — Prospect Magazine