The Theory of the Leisure Class: An Economic Study of Institutions (1899), by Thorstein Veblen, is a treatise on economics and a detailed, social critique of conspicuous consumption, as a function of social class and of consumerism, derived from the social stratification of people and the division of labour, which are the social institutions of the feudal period (9th - 15th centuries) that have continued to the modern era. Conducted in the late 19th century, Veblen's socio-economic analyses of the emergent division of labour proved to be accurate, sociological predictions of the economic...

One of the great thinkers of the early 20th century, American economist and sociologist THORSTEIN BUNDE VEBLEN (1857-1929) is best remembered for coining the phrase "conspicuous consumption." But he also, in this 1921 volume, foresaw the rise of the scientist and the technologist as an economic power. Here, he explains the conflict between the entrepreneur and the engineer . the new power of the technological craftsman in the industrial scheme . why any "revolution" in America would come from organized labor and more, ALSO FROM COSIMO: Veblen's The Vested Interests and the Common Man, The...

The Socialist Economics of Karl Marx and His Followers' was first published in 1906, in the Quarterly Journal of Economics. It's author, Thorstein Veblen, was the son of Norwegian American immigrants. He grew up to become a prominent economist and sociologist, producing many books and articles, and is often remembered for his use evolutionary theory to develop a 20th century theory of economics. Veblen is famous for the idea of -conspicuous consumption-. Conspicuous consumption, along with -conspicuous leisure-, is performed to demonstrate wealth or mark social status. Veblen explains the...