Can Capitalism Survive?
by Dr. Leonard Peikoff
Total Time: 58 minutes
In “Can Capitalism Survive?,” presented in 1990, Dr. Peikoff considers whether capitalism can survive the current philosophic environment. He addresses the fundamental questions underlying a political system—namely, what is good, what is real, and what is true. These questions each identify a philosophic question. Peikoff argues that egoism in ethics, reality in metaphysics, and reason in epistemology is what is required to have a system of capitalism. He surveys the contemporary political scene to note that the intellectuals on both sides oppose these fundamentals, and thus are not supporters of capitalism, and traces how this process began in the nineteenth century.
Study Guide
This material is designed to help you digest the lecture content. You can also download a printable PDF version below.
| What is the nature of the American economy according to Dr. Peikoff? |
| What is the proper definition of capitalism? |
| What is the relationship between state and economy? |
| Why has capitalism survived as long as it has in America? Why has it deteriorated so much? |
| What is the fundamental reason that capitalism is perishing? |
| What is the relationship between politics and the main branches of philosophy? |
| Explain the main ethical basis for a capitalist political system. |
| Explain the basic metaphysical issues underlying a capitalist system. |
| What are the main epistemological foundations of capitalism? |
Q&A Guide
Below is a list of questions from the audience taken from this lecture, along with (approximate) time stamps.
| 39:33 | Would pure capitalism really be consistent with man’s rights because, through the medium of advertising, it would inculcate in people a desire for goods that they couldn’t really satisfy, and then they’d be frustrated and rebel, steal, etc.? |
| 41:38 | What makes people drawn to the idea of self-sacrifice? |
| 44:35 | Does Objectivism oppose Libertarianism? Does that movement give you hope? |
| 47:14 | Aren’t we in a vicious circle? Because you say that students should picket for more capitalist professors, but students don’t know enough about capitalism to picket for them? |
| 49:43 | Thoughts on the situation at the University of Pennsylvania. |
| 53:47 | How will we get around the fact that most individuals haven’t got the time, in effect, to go into philosophic depth? |
| 55:48 | What are your views on anarchism? |