Virtue Capitalists: The Rise and Fall of the Professional Class in the Anglophone World, 1870-2008

Virtue Capitalists explores the rise of the professional middle class across the Anglophone world from 1870 to 2008, arguing that the British middle class structured old forms of virtue into rapidly expanding white-collar professional work to drive economic and civilizational expansion.

Format: Hardback
Length: 317 pages
Publication date: 21 September 2023
Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Virtue Capitalists delves into the emergence of the professional middle class across the Anglophone world, spanning from approximately 1870 to 2008. Focusing on British settler colonies such as Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the United States, Hannah Forsyth contends that the British middle class played a pivotal role in structuring old forms of virtue into rapidly expanding white-collar professional work. This transformation was essential for driving economic and civilizational expansion across these colonies. The middle class invested this virtue to generate social and economic profit, thereby embedding it within the networked Anglophone economy. By the mid-twentieth century, the professional class had become dominant globally, collaborating with managers whose resources facilitated the implementation of virtuous strategies. However, the 1970s economic crisis also brought about a moral crisis for all professions, leading to a separation of interests between expert and managerial workers. This competition intensified, marking a significant shift in the dynamics of professional life.

Weight: 617g
ISBN-13: 9781009206488