The Enigma of Capital: And the Crises of Capitalism [Hardcover]

David Harvey is probably both the best known and most prolific author on popular topics in Marxist economics today, and this is one of his best books so far. Working always from his perspective as an economic geographer, in "The Enigma of Capital" he uses the occasion of the current financial crisis to provide a lengthy and highly accessible popular overview of the theory of capital. He analyzes what capital is, where it came from, how it accumulates, how it relates to markets, what the role is of ground rent and localization in its movement (both metaphorical and real), and finally combines all this into a highly compelling political economic narrative. What is especially virtuous about this book, even compared with some of Harvey's excellent earlier works, is his ability to explain the general thrust of Marxist political economy in a manner that is easily understood by the wider newspaper-reading public and without using virtually any of the specific technical terminology of Marxism, as well as avoiding any of the explicit political content that is specific to Marxism (other than a very skeptical attitude towards capitalism as such). This is no mean feat given the complicated nature of capital and the different levels of analysis it seems to require to be fully understood. Harvey of course adds to the fairly traditional Marxist picture so narrated his own particular emphasis on place and space as essential mediating elements in capital's circulation, both economically and politically. I think this is a useful and important addition, in particular with an eye to the local impact of political economy becoming 'real' in this way - one need but look at Newcastle or Detroit and see what this means.

The book focuses on analyzing capitalism as it presents itself now - there is not much political commentary in terms of opposition to capitalism, except for some general comments at the end. This avoids, as too many Marxist economic books do, the question of realistic alternatives. It also does not pay particular attention to the 'prehistory' of capital. But both of these are very irrelevant objections, as the virtue of this book is not to be yet another rehash of things that have been done very well by others already. Its virtue is in integrating the analysis of space, crisis, and capital into a work for a general public that is hostile to Marxist terminology and skeptical about economists in general (both probably with good reason). For that reason alone, this book comes with warm recommendation - even more when combined with his other recent major works, "The Limits to Capital" (Limits to Capital) which works at a more in-depth theoretical level, and his companion to Marx's Capital (A Companion to Marx's Capital).

David Harvey has produced an excellent study of capitalism, the current economic crisis and the way the Left could respond to it.

Harvey deals with the current economic crisis in chapter one and gives a clear, concise account of what went wrong and why.

As for the current crisis, that is pretty much it in this book. What Harvey is concerned with is the fact that the current crisis is just the latest of many and Harvey is most concerned with demonstrating that crises are innate and necessary to capitalism.

Harvey presents his re-working and re-theorising of Marx's analysis of 'Capital' to show how capitalism uses crises to reform, renew and revitalise itself. This Harvey accomplishes brilliantly. Harvey explains complex ideas in an easy to understand way.

Harvey theorises that capitalism may have reached a point where it cannot get over crisis and get back to a compound growth rate of 3% PA as the amount of capital that needs to be invested is simply too huge. Hence the growth of the financial sector and financial crises.

This leads to the final section on what the Left should do to tackle the crisis. For capitalism can solve it's problems as long as it makes people pay the price of it's crises: lost jobs, lost pensions, destroyed environment, wrecked public services and vast amounts of capital destroyed in wars.

Harvey argues for a uniting of the Left across a broad range of struggles and across the globe. A necessary yet difficult task. Harvey's focus seems to be to look beyond the traditional labour movements which seems to contradict many of his arguments about how capitalism works - Harvey doesn't seem to see the working class as central to a socialist challenge to capitalism. That may prove contentious. Harvey's book deserves to be widely read and a focus for debates on the Left as to how to respond to the current crisis.

If you, like I, have found yourself pondering the banking crisis that befell the US and Europe at the close of 2008, agonised over the reasons and causes that led to the crisis, feel dispossession and indignation at the enormity and consequence of the bailouts, and wonder that the bailouts are indicative of counter-democratic tendencies, then David Harveys' 'Enigma of Capital' is a book for you; and if you have never contemplated any of the foregoing then David Harveys' 'Enigma of Capital' is also a book for you.
Prior to the events of 2008 and the succession of events that ensue within the Euro-zone I would never have considered reading such a title or such a topic, and I would have been scepitical that any one person could analyze the causes of a crisis, indeed a succession of crises, with such pragmatism and clarity. It is by chance and for unconnected reasons that in the new year of 2009 I began serious contemplation of other and more personal challenges and it was an entirely unexpected result that the direction I followed with regard to that would also yield unconventional insight in regard to economics, not from an aspect of a study of the flow of money, but from an aspect of evolutionary theory as applied to the long term functional evolution and expansion of economic activity. None of this makes me clever or knowledgeable but I do gain some satisfaction from having reasoned along one or two lines of thought and then subsequently finding similar assertions, and many, many more, put forward with aplomb and gravitas by Mr Harvey. 'The Enigma of Capital' is timely and revelatory in explaining not just the current, but a succession of market crises, and it resounds with me because a seemingly unlikely way of looking at things produced embryonic thoughts synergistic with (some of) the content.

David Harvey is a professor of anthropolgy with a detailed insight of Marx and Marxs' 'Capital'. Words like 'Marxism', 'Capitalism' and 'Communism' are loaded. Such loading precipitates pre-conceptions and such preconceptions would previously have been a barrier to my becoming interested, yet Harvey has fired curiosity in me, not for the political direction, but for potential to explain the how and why of the catastrophe.
Marx, I believe, was largely an essayist, reasoning out the evolutionary traits and likely consequences of growth and change within monetary economies and capitalist architectures much in the same vain that Darwin applied his insightful mind to the question of evolution. Marx, it is reported, had considerable interest in Darwins' work. It has taken decades for a clear endorsement and clarification of Evolutionary theory. Genetic science has now proven Darwin almost entirely correct in principle, albeit not entirely correct in the detail. For what I may know of Marx (very little) it may be that a succession of crises, especially the ripple effects of the banking crisis of 2008, and emerging analysis and comprehension could do for Marx what genetics did for Darwin, ie. prove him largely correct in principle. In appreciation of this Mr Harvey may have a head start over prevailing orthodoxy.
I agree with the two preceding reviewers, this is an immensely valuable analysis of the current financial and global monetary crisis that makes uncommon sense. I confess to be being a bit of a dullard, but I have found this volume to be both a compelling and readable explanation of a very challenging subject and it reads with the pace of a most skilfully crafted thriller. The suspense is in watching real-time events unfold as academics, advisers, governments and alliances try to face the ensuing challenges.