Understanding Piketty’s Capital in the Twenty-First Century

294 Pages·2015·3.83 MB·English

by  Steven Pressman

Understanding Piketty’s Capital in the
Twenty-First Century
Thomas Piketty’s Capital in the Twenty-First Century reached the top of most
best seller lists shortly after it was released. Nonetheless, few people actually read
the book. Yet reviewers have agreed that the book is important because it touches
on one of the major problems facing the US economy, the UK economy, and
many developed nations: rising income and wealth inequality. It also provides an
explanation of the problem and a policy solution: a global wealth tax.
This book is intended to do three things. First, it provides a summary of the
argument of Piketty’s work, which many people have bought and few people
have read. Second, it fills in some of the gaps in the book, by providing readers
with the background that is needed to understand the volume and the argument.
This background information discusses economic data sources, measures of
inequality, and why income inequality is such an important issue today. Finally,
the work provides a defense of Piketty’s analysis and at times some criticism of
his work.
Pressman explains why the problem of rising inequality is important, where
Piketty’s data comes from, and the strengths and weaknesses of that data. It
defends Piketty’s inequality, r>g, as the reason inequality has risen over the past
several decades in many developed nations. Using Piketty’s own data, this book
argues that rising inequality is not just a characteristic of capitalism, but results
from different growth rates for income and wealth, which can occur under any
type of economic system.
Understanding Piketty’s Capital in the Twenty-First Century is the ideal
introduction to one of the most important books of recent years for anyone
interested in Piketty’s work and the inevitability of inequality.
Steven Pressman is Professor of Economics at Colorado State University in Fort
Collins, Colorado, and Professor Emeritus of Economics and Finance at
Monmouth University in West Long Branch, NJ. He also serves as North
American Editor of the Review of Political Economy, Book Review Editor of the
Eastern Economic Journal, and Treasurer of the Eastern Economic Association.
Pressman has published more than 150 articles in refereed journals and as book
chapters, and has authored or edited 17 books, including A New Guide to Post
Keynesian Economics (2001), Alternative Theories of the State (2006), and 50
Major Economists, 3rd ed. (2013), which has been translated into five different
languages. He is also a frequent contributor to local newspapers, and appears
frequently on local and national TV.
“This is the most important critique of the most important book in economics in recent years. Pressman
breaks down Piketty in a manner that will be valuable to both scholars and students alike.”
Robert S. Rycroft, Professor of Economics, University of Mary Washington, USA
“Piketty’s Capital in the Twenty-First Century is one of the most widely discussed books so far in this
century, but what is badly needed is a good-humored, readable introduction, which is provided by
Steven Pressman’s Understanding Piketty’s Capital in the Twenty-First Century. Like Piketty, Pressman
is a chronicler of inequality.”
E. Ray Canterbery, Professor Emeritus of Economics, Florida State University, USA
Understanding Piketty’s Capital in
the Twenty-First Century
Steven Pressman
First published 2016
by Routledge
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© 2016 Steven Pressman
The right of Steven Pressman to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance
with Sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patent Act 1988.
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Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to identify the owners of copyrights and to obtain permission to
reproduce copyrighted material.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Pressman, Steven, 1952–
Understanding Piketty’s capital in the twenty-first century / Steven Pressman.
pages cm
1. Piketty, Thomas, 1971– Capital au XXIe siècle. English. 2. Capitalism.
3. Income distribution. I. Title.
HB501.P6923 2015
332’.041—dc23                    2015013488
ISBN: 978-1-138-93974-5 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-138-93975-2 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-67472-8 (ebk) Typeset in Bembo
by Keystroke, Station Road, Codsall, Wolverhampton
For the kids, Rachel, Sarah, and Thaddeus and their spouses, Richard, Marshall,
and Hiroko
Contents
List of figures
List of tables
Preface
1 Hello Piketty
2 The fear of all sums: measuring income distribution
3 No tomfoolery: the costs of inequality
4 A big Piketty-ture (Part One: Introduction and chapters 1–2)
5 In a pretty Pikkel-ty (Part Two: chapters 3–6)
6 Pikketing income inequality (Part Three: chapters 7–12)
7 A taxing wealth of policy options (Part Four: chapters 13–16 and the
Conclusion)
8 Giles goat boy?
9 Pikketing up the pieces
Index