The Theory of the Leisure Class: An Economic Study in the Evolution of Institutions. by Veblen, Thorstein - 1899

New York: The Macmillan Company, 1899. First edition of the author’s landmark work. Octavo, original green cloth, gilt topstain. In near fine condition with only light shelfwear to the extremities. Housed in a custom clamshell box. A very sharp copy. Almost a century after its original publication, Thorstein Veblen's work is as fresh and relevant as ever. Veblen's Theory of the Leisure Class is in the tradition of Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations and Thomas Hobbes' Leviathan, yet it provides a surprisingly contemporary look at American economics and society. Establishing such terms as 'conspicuous consumption' and 'pecuniary emulation,' Veblen's most famous work has become an archetype not only of economic theory, but of historical and sociological thought as well. An iconoclastic masterpiece of American social thought. Veblen assails the sacrosanct concepts borrowed from evolutionary biology and used to justify social inequality. The fruit of much lonely study and contemplation, this first book of Veblen's catapulted him to prominence at the age of 42. Thoroughly independent and ornery in his living and thinking, Veblen began here his long and provocative criticism of the business enterprise system. his ideas were seminal and his influence is continuous" (100 Influential American Books).