The Price of Misfortune: Rights and Wrongs in Indebted America

The history of the struggle for debtors' rights, from the Civil War to the Great Depression, is explored in The Price of Misfortune, which reveals how advocates used analogies between slavery and imprisonment for debt to campaign for new protections for debtors, but these reforms tended to assume an ideal borrower who was white, propertied, and male.

Format: Hardback
Length: 216 pages
Publication date: 25 October 2023
Publisher: The University of Chicago Press

The history of the struggle for debtors' rights, from the Civil War to the Great Depression, is a complex and multifaceted tale that encompasses a wide range of economic, social, and political factors. It is a story that has shaped the way we think about debt, credit, and the responsibilities of both borrowers and lenders.

The concept of debtors' rights has evolved significantly over time, reflecting the changing attitudes towards debt and the rights of individuals in society. During the Civil War, for example, advocates drew powerful analogies between slavery, imprisonment for debt, and the experiences of wage garnishment and property foreclosure. These analogies were used to campaign for bold new protections for debtors, including the right to bankruptcy and the protection of personal property from seizure.

However, these reforms tended to assume as their ideal borrower someone who was white, propertied, and male. In subsequent decades, the emancipatory promise of debtors' rights would be tested as women, wage earners, and African Americans seized on their language to challenge other structural inequalities, such as the dependency of marriage, the exploitation of industrial capitalism, and the oppression of Jim Crow.

By reconstructing these forgotten developments and recovering the experiences of indebted farmwives, sharecroppers, and wage workers, The Price of Misfortune offers a new history of inequality, coercion, and law amid the early financialization of American capitalism.

One of the key themes of the book is the ways in which debt has become a tool of coercion and control, particularly for marginalized and vulnerable populations. During the Great Depression, for example, banks and other financial institutions used debt to force individuals and families into bankruptcy, often without their consent or understanding of the consequences. This practice not only exacerbated the economic suffering of those affected but also had long-lasting impacts on their credit scores and ability to access credit in the future.

Another important theme of the book is the ways in which debt has become a source of inequality and discrimination. As noted earlier, the ideal borrower during the early stages of debtors' rights reforms was someone who was white, propertied, and male. This created a system of privilege and disadvantage that marginalized women, wage earners, and African Americans, who were often excluded from the benefits of debt relief and financial stability.

The Price of Misfortune also explores the ways in which debt has become a global phenomenon, with the rise of the financial industry and the rise of consumerism. The book argues that the global financial crisis of 2008 was a result of a combination of factors, including the over-reliance on debt, the lack of regulation, and the concentration of wealth and power in the hands of a few. This crisis not only had devastating consequences for individuals and families but also had broader social and economic implications, such as the rise of populism and the decline of trust in institutions.

In conclusion, The Price of Misfortune is a thought-provoking and important book that offers a new perspective on the history of debtors' rights and the struggles of reformers who fought to establish financial freedoms in law. The book demonstrates the ways in which debt has become a tool of coercion and control, a source of inequality and discrimination, and a global phenomenon. It is a must-read for anyone interested in understanding the complex and multifaceted relationship between debt, credit, and the rights of individuals in society.

Weight: 452g
Dimension: 161 x 237 x 20 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780226733982