Transcending the Economy
Subtitle: On the Potential of Passionate Labor and the Wastes of the Market
Edition: 1 edition
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
Published: May 5, 2000
Language: eng
Format: Hardcover
Number of pages: 192
ISBN-13: 9780312229771
Subjects: Economics Of Special Subjects; Business & Economics; Business / Economics / Finance; Business/Economics; Development - Economic Development; Political Ideologies - Communism & Socialism; Business & Economics / Labor; Development - Business Development; Labor; Economics; Human capital; Social justice; United States; Waste (Economics)
First sentence: A sensory deprivation chamber is a dark, soundproof room in which a solitary person cannot hear anything or see anything.
Description: "Transcending the Economy explores the reasons why our economy fails to provide a more fulfilling way of life. Michael Perelman argues that the irrational dominance of markets imposes burdens of needless waste and lost potential, and furthermore, traditional economics is illequipped to approach such matters because of its focus on limits rather than potential.

He offers case studies of economists' limited attempts to analyze waste, and paints a vivid picture of how a narrow preconception of human nature has precluded society from escaping the tight bounds of market organization. As an alternative, Perelman develops Charles Fourier's concept of passionate labor.

Using examples ranging from wartime selflessness to blood donations and computer programming, he demonstrates that passionate labor has the potential to elevate both human performance and satisfaction well beyond the shallow limits imposed by markets."--BOOK JACKET.