schumpeter 1942 capitalism socialism and democracy

Of these, creative destruction has been absorbed into standard economic theory. But he says, “If a doctor predicts that his patient will die presently,” he wrote, “this does not mean that he desires it.” The section consists of 100 pages with the following ten topics: The Rate of Increase of Total Output, Plausible Capitalism, The Process of Creative Destruction, Monopolistic Practices, Closed Season, The Vanishing of Investment Opportunity, The Civilization of Capitalism, Crumbling Walls, Growing Hostility, and Decomposition.

Schumpeter answers 'no' in the prologue to this section. On page 53 he argues that Marx's theory better predicts English and Dutch colonial experiences in the tropics, but fails when applied to New England for example. Schumpeter claims that any theory of crisis gains support when crises occur, and points to some developments that Marx's theories have failed to predict. The last section, Marx the Teacher, evaluates the usefulness of Marx's thought to interpret the events of his time and those between his death and Schumpeter's time. He also deals with the concept of crisis and business cycle, two economic theories that Marx pioneered (p. 39). The section Marx the Economist focuses on Marx's economic theory and judges it excessively 'stationary' (pp. 27, 31). The section Marx the Sociologist focuses on how Marx's theory of class fits in with the larger intellectual traditions of the day and how it superseded them in at least its ability to synthesize sociological thought. The section Marx the Prophet explains that if nothing else Marx would have been received well by people who needed a theory to explain what was happening in their society. The analysis of Marx is broken down into four roles that Schumpeter ascribes to the writer (prophet, sociologist, economist, and teacher). Noteworthy is the way that Schumpeter points out the difference between the capitalist and the entrepreneur, a distinction that he claims Marx would have been better served to make (p. 52). Schumpeter devotes the first 56 pages of the book to an analysis of Marxian thought and the place within it for entrepreneurs.

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Schumpeter 1942 capitalism socialism and democracy