Recently I
came across Jonathan Haidt's writing on the two stories of capitalism. (He is
working on a book on the subject.) In one capitalism oppresses people; this
story fuels the narrative of the left. You can hear it in the language of
liberals like Elizabeth Warren. It might not be stated so boldly but if you
listen closely the message is there: that capitalism thrives by exploiting
people and that government liberates us from the handcuffs of inequality
foisted upon us by the rich.
The other
story, favored by the right, proclaims capitalism liberates people and that
government oppresses by burdening us with rules and regulations. This story
resounds especially strong within the libertarian and Tea Party.
I believe
there is a third story in line with Arnold Kling's three languages of politics
in which some claim capitalism civilizes us and saves us from barbarism. For
examples listen to more traditional conservatives such as Ann Coulter or Rush
Limbaugh.
I figure
that Haidt would argue that ultimately this story boils down to liberation:
capitalism saves us from tribalism and primitivism. Nonetheless, here is Haidt’s
explanation of the two stories. I’ve provided several links after these quotes
that explain Haidt’s ideas in more detail.
There has long been a thoroughly
negative story about commerce, going back to biblical times, in which
businessmen, traders, and money lenders are bloodsuckers who extort wealth from
workers and customers without contributing anything of value. When mercantile
capitalism came along in the 16th century, and even more so when industrial
capitalism conquered the globe in the 19th century, the negative story began to
animate left-leaning parties and revolutionaries in many countries—with
history-shaping consequences for the 20th century. This is story #1: Capitalism
is exploitation. It is a curse, a virus, a disaster for the poor and the
planet. This story is still told today, as we saw in the Occupy Wall Street
movement.
But capitalism has also had its
passionate defenders, most notably Adam Smith in the 18th century, who
explained how capitalism achieves the magic of value creation (as in his famous
example of a pin factory). The rising wealth, longevity, and living standards
of the 19th and 20th centuries—even for the poor and working class—led to the
formation of a thoroughly positive story about capitalism, told by economists
such as Friedrich Hayek, Ludwig von Mises, and Milton Friedman. This is story
#2: Capitalism is liberation. Free market capitalism is Prometheus, giving fire
and freedom to the human race. In this story, it is left-leaning ideologies
(socialism, Marxism, and the affection for big government) that continually
attack human progress, disconnecting whole nations from the market and dragging
them down into poverty for decades—until they see the light, as China and India
did a few decades ago.
I mentioned
Arnold Kling earlier. There is a lot of overlap between Haidt’s work and Kling’s
three languages of politics. Kling argues that the language of the left centers
on the oppressed versus oppressors axis. Conservatives argue along the lines of
civilization versus barbarism. Libertarians see things in terms of liberty
versus coercion. All three groups then will craft different narratives, each with
their own favored axis and language.
How does
this apply to us? I believe knowing about narratives and the kinds of languages
can ultimately help us better communicate our ideas with those who disagree
with us.
