Freedom from Want: American Liberalism and the Idea of the Consumer
In 1941, Franklin Delano Roosevelt identified "four essential human freedoms." Three of these—freedom from fear, freedom of speech, and freedom of religion—had long been understood as defining principles of liberalism. Roosevelt's fourth freedom—freedom from want—was not. Indeed, classic liberals had argued that the only way to guarantee this freedom would be through an illiberal redistribution of wealth. In Freedom from Want, Kathleen G. Donohue describes how, between the 1880s and the 1940s, American intellectuals transformed classical liberalism into its modern American counterpart by emphasizing consumers over producers and consumption over production.

Donohue first examines this conceptual shift through the writings of a wide range of late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century social critics—among them William Graham Sumner, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Richard T. Ely, Edward Bellamy, and Thorstein Veblen—who rethought not only the negative connotations of consumerism but also the connection between one's right to consume and one's role in the production process. She then turns to the politicization of these ideas beginning with the establishment of a more consumer-oriented liberalism by Walter Lippmann and Walter Weyl and ending in the New Deal era, when this debate evolved from intellectual discourse into public policy with the creation of such bodies as the National Recovery Administration and the Agricultural Adjustment Administration.

Deftly combining intellectual, cultural, and political history, Freedom from Want sheds new light on the ways in which Americans reconceptualized the place of the consumer in society and the implications of these shifting attitudes for the philosophy of
liberalism and the role of government in safeguarding the material welfare of the people.

1101796398
Freedom from Want: American Liberalism and the Idea of the Consumer
In 1941, Franklin Delano Roosevelt identified "four essential human freedoms." Three of these—freedom from fear, freedom of speech, and freedom of religion—had long been understood as defining principles of liberalism. Roosevelt's fourth freedom—freedom from want—was not. Indeed, classic liberals had argued that the only way to guarantee this freedom would be through an illiberal redistribution of wealth. In Freedom from Want, Kathleen G. Donohue describes how, between the 1880s and the 1940s, American intellectuals transformed classical liberalism into its modern American counterpart by emphasizing consumers over producers and consumption over production.

Donohue first examines this conceptual shift through the writings of a wide range of late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century social critics—among them William Graham Sumner, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Richard T. Ely, Edward Bellamy, and Thorstein Veblen—who rethought not only the negative connotations of consumerism but also the connection between one's right to consume and one's role in the production process. She then turns to the politicization of these ideas beginning with the establishment of a more consumer-oriented liberalism by Walter Lippmann and Walter Weyl and ending in the New Deal era, when this debate evolved from intellectual discourse into public policy with the creation of such bodies as the National Recovery Administration and the Agricultural Adjustment Administration.

Deftly combining intellectual, cultural, and political history, Freedom from Want sheds new light on the ways in which Americans reconceptualized the place of the consumer in society and the implications of these shifting attitudes for the philosophy of
liberalism and the role of government in safeguarding the material welfare of the people.

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Freedom from Want: American Liberalism and the Idea of the Consumer

Freedom from Want: American Liberalism and the Idea of the Consumer

by Kathleen G. Donohue
Freedom from Want: American Liberalism and the Idea of the Consumer

Freedom from Want: American Liberalism and the Idea of the Consumer

by Kathleen G. Donohue

Overview

In 1941, Franklin Delano Roosevelt identified "four essential human freedoms." Three of these—freedom from fear, freedom of speech, and freedom of religion—had long been understood as defining principles of liberalism. Roosevelt's fourth freedom—freedom from want—was not. Indeed, classic liberals had argued that the only way to guarantee this freedom would be through an illiberal redistribution of wealth. In Freedom from Want, Kathleen G. Donohue describes how, between the 1880s and the 1940s, American intellectuals transformed classical liberalism into its modern American counterpart by emphasizing consumers over producers and consumption over production.

Donohue first examines this conceptual shift through the writings of a wide range of late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century social critics—among them William Graham Sumner, Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Richard T. Ely, Edward Bellamy, and Thorstein Veblen—who rethought not only the negative connotations of consumerism but also the connection between one's right to consume and one's role in the production process. She then turns to the politicization of these ideas beginning with the establishment of a more consumer-oriented liberalism by Walter Lippmann and Walter Weyl and ending in the New Deal era, when this debate evolved from intellectual discourse into public policy with the creation of such bodies as the National Recovery Administration and the Agricultural Adjustment Administration.

Deftly combining intellectual, cultural, and political history, Freedom from Want sheds new light on the ways in which Americans reconceptualized the place of the consumer in society and the implications of these shifting attitudes for the philosophy of
liberalism and the role of government in safeguarding the material welfare of the people.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780801883910
Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
Publication date: 01/20/2006
Series: New Studies in American Intellectual and Cultural History
Edition description: New Edition
Pages: 344
Product dimensions: 6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.75(d)
Age Range: 18 Years

About the Author

Kathleen G. Donohue is an assistant professor of history at Central Michigan University.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. The Producerist Worldview, 1870–1900
2. Legitimizing the Consumer, 1880–1900
3. At the Crossroads, 1899–1912
4. Politicizing the Consumer, 1909–1923
5. "What's an Economic System For?" 1917–1933
6. The Demise of Economic Planning, 1933–1940
7. The Common Ground of Abundance, 1933–1940
Conclusion
Notes
Essay on Sources
Index

What People are Saying About This

Daniel Horowitz

A truly original book. One that reveals an exceptionally strong command of the history of political theory and the history of economic ideas. Unusually bold and polished, it adds admirably to our understanding of the emergence of consumer ideology and the reshaping of American liberalism and politics.

— Daniel Horowitz, Smith College

Robert Westbrook

An important contribution to the history of modern American liberalism. In a series of exceptionally acute readings of writers and activists both familiar and obscure, she makes a compelling case for an important shift in the estimate of the virtues of the consumer in American economic thought from the mid-nineteenth century through the New Deal. Her book will open many eyes with a fresh perspective on thinkers historians thought they knew well and brings to light the work of others whose significance has been neglected.

— Robert Westbrook, University of Rochester

Lawrence Glickman

Many books have been published recently on the topic of consumer society, but this one carves out a unique place on that shelf. Freedom from Want is impressively documented, well constructed, historiographically significant, and persuasive, expertly moving beyond consumer society itself to make an original contribution to the history of American liberalism.

From the Publisher

An important contribution to the history of modern American liberalism. In a series of exceptionally acute readings of writers and activists both familiar and obscure, she makes a compelling case for an important shift in the estimate of the virtues of the consumer in American economic thought from the mid-nineteenth century through the New Deal. Her book will open many eyes with a fresh perspective on thinkers historians thought they knew well and brings to light the work of others whose significance has been neglected.
—Robert Westbrook, University of Rochester

A wonderfully rich and complicated exploration of a major shift in the way Americans came to view their society. Brings together not only a great deal of existing scholarship but also an impressive familiarity with the primary sources to create a coherent and persuasive account of the rise of consumerist ideas in the first half of the twentieth century.
—Alan Brinkley, Columbia University

A truly original book. One that reveals an exceptionally strong command of the history of political theory and the history of economic ideas. Unusually bold and polished, it adds admirably to our understanding of the emergence of consumer ideology and the reshaping of American liberalism and politics.
—Daniel Horowitz, Smith College

Many books have been published recently on the topic of consumer society, but this one carves out a unique place on that shelf. Freedom from Want is impressively documented, well constructed, historiographically significant, and persuasive, expertly moving beyond consumer society itself to make an original contribution to the history of American liberalism.
—Lawrence Glickman, University of South Carolina

Alan Brinkley

A wonderfully rich and complicated exploration of a major shift in the way Americans came to view their society. Brings together not only a great deal of existing scholarship but also an impressive familiarity with the primary sources to create a coherent and persuasive account of the rise of consumerist ideas in the first half of the twentieth century.

— Alan Brinkley, Columbia University

Lawrence Glickman

Many books have been published recently on the topic of consumer society, but this one carves out a unique place on that shelf. Freedom from Want is impressively documented, well constructed, historiographically significant, and persuasive, expertly moving beyond consumer society itself to make an original contribution to the history of American liberalism.

— Lawrence Glickman, University of South Carolina

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