Lowell and Harvey sought out something more than profit in their early visions of capturing the textile business in America by building many mills in the American Northeast and taming the Wild West by establishing the Harvey Houses in the American Southwest. Lowell and Harvey exemplify what the historian Daniel Boorstin (1974) identifies as the “colonist” mindset in American history.
These two men were in the business of not just making a profit, but also transforming the world in which they lived so that it might become more aligned with (assimilated to) their personal value system. Rosalind Sun and I studied the impact of their mindset and values on the lives of the women they employed. These women were the so-called “Mill Girls” of Lowell’s New England enterprises and the “Harvey Girls” of Fred Harvey’s Southwest restaurants.
We must pause here, for there is something much deeper and more systemic than just a colonist mindset operating here. In reflecting on the nature of profit in capitalist-based societies, it is important to recognize that the family-owned businesses of Lowell and Harvey were initially protected as Corporations precisely because they were established on behalf of the public interest, not personal profit. As Ralph Estes (1996, p. x) has noted:
“[C]orporations were first chartered in the public interest, to meet a public need, to provide a public service. They were seen as extensions of the government, doing government—that is, state or public—business. Investors were allowed a return for the use of their capital . . . But the reason for granting the charter was the public purpose.”
Tragically, corporations’ public service focus soon changed. The orientation of most family-owned businesses, such as those owned by the Lowell and Harvey families, was also redirected. The early “colonist” ethics of those who founded enterprises were often discarded. The perspectives, practices, and values of those members of family-owned businesses who get it all started are usually short-lived, especially when ownership is transferred to the second generation of the family. Something often gets lost in transmitting views and traditions from one generation to the next.
The Nature and Dynamics of Modern Capitalism
Given these fundamental conditions required of capitalism, I am ready to draw from several diverse sources in describing the nature and dynamics of modern capitalism as they impact on the work lives of many people (Dowd, 1977; Estes, 1996; Friedman, 2020; Heilbroner, 1999; Zuboff, 2020). I identify factors that seem particularly important when considering why capitalism has become dominant in many societies. Each of these factors is related to one or more environmental conditions in which many people have labored and lived. Each factor enhances or diminishes one’s sense of self-worth, and ultimately, the sense of worth and purpose in an entire community and nation.
Benefiting and thriving
We begin with those factors that not only enable capitalism to thrive, but also yield benefits for the society in which capitalism is engaged.
Economic prosperity: Capitalism gains credibility when the economy of a society is prospering. Leaders often attribute this prosperity to the benefits accruing from capitalism. Other factors often play an even more important role, such as an abundance of natural resources or relative isolation from foreign attack (these being two enabling conditions found in the United States). It is important, however, to acknowledge that capitalism has been instrumental in creating conditions for economic growth in many countries.
