Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
Audiobook7 hours
The Land of Enterprise: A Business History of the United States
Written by Benjamin C. Waterhouse
Narrated by George Newbern
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
5/5
()
About this audiobook
This groundbreaking account of the development of American business from the colonial period to the present explains that the history of the United States can best be understood not as a search for freedom—but as a search for wealth and prosperity.
The Land of Enterprise charts the development of American business from the colonial period to the present. It explores the nation’s evolving economic, social, and political landscape by examining how different types of enterprising activities rose and fell, how new labor and production technologies supplanted old ones—and at what costs—and how Americans of all stripes responded to the tumultuous world of business. In particular, historian Benjamin Waterhouse highlights the changes in business practices, the development of different industries and sectors, and the complex relationship between business and national politics.
From executives and bankers to farmers and sailors, from union leaders to politicians to slaves, business history is American history, and Waterhouse pays tribute to the unnamed millions who traded their labor (sometimes by choice, often not) or decided what products to consume (sometimes informed, often not). Their story includes those who fought against what they saw as an oppressive system of exploitation as well as those who defended free markets from any outside intervention. The Land of Enterprise is not only a comprehensive look into our past achievements, but offers clues as to how to confront the challenges of today’s world: globalization, income inequality, and technological change.
The Land of Enterprise charts the development of American business from the colonial period to the present. It explores the nation’s evolving economic, social, and political landscape by examining how different types of enterprising activities rose and fell, how new labor and production technologies supplanted old ones—and at what costs—and how Americans of all stripes responded to the tumultuous world of business. In particular, historian Benjamin Waterhouse highlights the changes in business practices, the development of different industries and sectors, and the complex relationship between business and national politics.
From executives and bankers to farmers and sailors, from union leaders to politicians to slaves, business history is American history, and Waterhouse pays tribute to the unnamed millions who traded their labor (sometimes by choice, often not) or decided what products to consume (sometimes informed, often not). Their story includes those who fought against what they saw as an oppressive system of exploitation as well as those who defended free markets from any outside intervention. The Land of Enterprise is not only a comprehensive look into our past achievements, but offers clues as to how to confront the challenges of today’s world: globalization, income inequality, and technological change.
Author
Benjamin C. Waterhouse
Benjamin C. Waterhouse is a historian of American politics, business, and capitalism. Waterhouse graduated from Princeton University and received his PhD in history from Harvard University. He is currently an associate professor and Grauer Scholar at the University of North Carolina. He lives in Chapel Hill with his wife Daniela and their two children. He is the author of Lobbying America: The Politics of Business from Nixon to NAFTA and The Land of Enterprise: A Business History of the United States.
Related to The Land of Enterprise
Related audiobooks
The Dawn of Innovation: The First American Industrial Revolution 13 Bankers: The Wall Street Takeover and the Next Financial Meltdown Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Money Men: Capitalism, Democracy, and the Hundred Years' War over the American Dollar Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5An Empire of Wealth: The Epic History of American Economic Power Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5All the Presidents' Bankers: The Hidden Alliances That Drive American Power Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Economic Warfare: Secrets of Wealth Creation in the Age of Welfare Politics Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsGDP: A Brief but Affectionate History - Revised and expanded Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Divested: Inequality in the Age of Finance Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Day the Markets Roared: How a 1982 Forecast Sparked a Global Bull Market Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Death of Capital: How New Policy Can Restore Stability Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Mr Five Per Cent: The Many Lives of Calouste Gulbenkian, the World's Richest Man Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Dynasties: Fortunes and Misfortunes of the World's Great Family Businesses Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5JPMorgan's Fall and Revival: How the Wave of Consolidation Changed America's Premier Bank Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The New Tycoons: Inside the Trillion Dollar Private Equity Industry That Owns Everything Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Busted: Life Inside the Great Mortgage Meltdown Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Iron Empires: Robber Barons, Railroads, and the Making of Modern America Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Catching Lightning in a Bottle: How Merrill Lynch Revolutionized the Financial World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Richest Man Who Ever Lived: The Life and Times of Jacob Fugger Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Partnership: The Making of Goldman Sachs Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5American Rascal: How Jay Gould Built Wall Street's Biggest Fortune Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Other Peoples' Money and How The Bankers Use It Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Anatomy of Greed: The Unshredded Truth from an Enron Insider Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The King of Content: Sumner Redstone's Battle for Viacom, CBS, and Everlasting Control of His Media Empire Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5King of Capital: The Remarkable Rise, Fall, and Rise Again of Steve Schwarzman and Blackstone Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The New Elite: Inside the Minds of the Truly Wealthy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5VC: An American History Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Economics For You
Principles for Dealing with the Changing World Order: Why Nations Succeed or Fail Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Chip War: The Quest to Dominate the World's Most Critical Technology Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Think Like a Freak: The Authors of Freakonomics Offer to Retrain Your Brain Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Killing Sacred Cows: Overcoming the Financial Myths that are Destroying Your Prosperity Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5San Fransicko: Why Progressives Ruin Cities Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5These are the Plunderers: How Private Equity Runs—and Wrecks—America Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Meth Lunches: Food and Longing in an American City Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Myth of Capitalism: Monopolies and the Death of Competition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Freakonomics Rev Ed Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lexus and the Olive Tree: Understanding Globalization Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How the World Works Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Don't Trust Your Gut: Using Data to Get What You Really Want in Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Doughnut Economics: Seven Ways to Think Like a 21st-Century Economist Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Requiem for the American Dream: The 10 Principles of Concentration of Wealth & Power Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Color of Money: Black Banks and the Racial Wealth Gap Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Marvel Comics: The Untold Story Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Ascent of Money: A Financial History of the World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The War Below: Lithium, Copper, and the Global Battle to Power Our Lives Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Bad Samaritans: The Myth of Free Trade and the Secret History of Capitalism Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Poor Economics: A Radical Rethinking of the Way to Fight Global Poverty Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Why the Rich Are Getting Richer Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Sovereign Individual: Mastering the Transition to the Information Age Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Nudge: The Final Edition: Improving Decisions About Money, Health, And The Environment Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Economics 101: How the World Works Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Lords of Easy Money: How the Federal Reserve Broke the American Economy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5What We Owe Each Other: A New Social Contract for a Better Society Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Genius of Israel: The Surprising Resilience of a Divided Nation in a Turbulent World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related podcast episodes
Private equity’s plan to pillage America (with Brendan Ballou) 0% found this document usefulHow do we stop high inflation?: Rising prices are wreaking havoc, but there are no easy solutions 0% found this document usefulThe Rise of "Legal Fraud" | Bethany McLean 0% found this document usefulDavid Donaldson: Sherlock of Trade: MIT’s Dave Donaldson makes no assumptions about trade that are not based on facts. 100% found this document usefulLyn Alden: The Monetary Order Is Broken 0% found this document usefulDisney’s Bob Iger: How acquisitions become an ecosystem, part 1 0% found this document usefulMimetic Desire | The "Things Hidden..." Series | Episode 1 (WiM231) 0% found this document usefulThe dark side of business email attacks. 0% found this document usefulBusiness Weekly: Michael Lewis On How Behavioural Economics Changed The World 0% found this document usefulHilton vs Marriott | Check-In | 1 0% found this document usefulCarlota Perez | Technological revolution, government regulation, UBI and the Green Golden Age 0% found this document useful
Related articles
Are Stocks Heading For A Fall? MoneyWeekArticle
Are Stocks Heading For A Fall?
Sep 17, 2021
2 min readStock Market Today: Tech Rallies, Nasdaq Just Shy of New Highs KiplingerArticle
Stock Market Today: Tech Rallies, Nasdaq Just Shy of New Highs
Jun 17, 2021
The Nasdaq Composite pressed higher Thursday, to within just a few points of a fresh closing record, flipping the script on how the technology-heavy index has acted for much of 2021. The Federal Reserve yesterday revealed higher expectations for infl
2 min readHow Money Became the Measure of Everything The AtlanticArticle
How Money Became the Measure of Everything
Oct 19, 2017
7 min readBrave New World? America's Civil WarArticle
Brave New World?
Jun 1, 2021
3 min readFACT CHECK: Were The 1800s Steve Bannon's Kind Of America? NPRArticle
FACT CHECK: Were The 1800s Steve Bannon's Kind Of America?
Sep 11, 2017
4 min readThe Abandonment Of Growth And The Decline Of The West The Independent ReviewArticle
The Abandonment Of Growth And The Decline Of The West
Sep 15, 2022
From the founding of the republic to the turn of the millennium, America’s core economic creed was growth. That growth religion enabled the United States to become the world’s richest and most powerful nation, and dramatically improved Americans’ qua
42 min readLessons from Boston’s Past Manhattan InstituteArticle
Lessons from Boston’s Past
Mar 14, 2020
3 min readAmerica’s New President: Borders Are Back The AtlanticArticle
America’s New President: Borders Are Back
Jan 20, 2017
3 min readHaving A Minsky Moment MoneyWeekArticle
Having A Minsky Moment
Jul 21, 2023
2 min readThe Free Market Is Dead. What Comes Next? TIMEArticle
The Free Market Is Dead. What Comes Next?
May 14, 2021
5 min readThe Free Market Is Dead. What Comes Next? Time Magazine International EditionArticle
The Free Market Is Dead. What Comes Next?
May 14, 2021
5 min readAnother Union Star Civil War TimesArticle
Another Union Star
May 4, 2021
Historians of the Civil War and Reconstruction Era have devoted a great deal of attention to “drums and trumpets” military history: the decisions of generals, the movements of armies, and combat in the field. This is eminently understandable. After a
1 min readAmerica’s Monopolies Are Holding Back the Economy The AtlanticArticle
America’s Monopolies Are Holding Back the Economy
Feb 22, 2017
11 min readThe Blob Meets the Heartland The AtlanticArticle
The Blob Meets the Heartland
Sep 24, 2020
6 min readThe Revolting Mr. Taxpayer ReasonArticle
The Revolting Mr. Taxpayer
Jan 25, 2024
5 min readThe Politics of Dignity The AtlanticArticle
The Politics of Dignity
Feb 20, 2020
12 min readTales Of The Great Recession The Saturday Evening PostArticle
Tales Of The Great Recession
Jan 1, 2019
In this issue, we present a look back at the Great Recession — the causes, the impact, and the lessons learned. Ten years on, it’s easy to forget how hard it was for so many. In the essay “Middle Class Meltdown” (page 35), writer M.H. Miller describe
1 min readCapitalism Doesn’t Have to Be This Way The AtlanticArticle
Capitalism Doesn’t Have to Be This Way
May 21, 2021
6 min readReviews American HistoryArticle
Reviews
Jan 22, 2019
9 min readRobert Zoellick Explains How The History Of US Diplomacy Can Shape Foreign Policy NPRArticle
Robert Zoellick Explains How The History Of US Diplomacy Can Shape Foreign Policy
Aug 17, 2020
4 min readWhy America Radicalizes Brits The AtlanticArticle
Why America Radicalizes Brits
Feb 26, 2020
5 min readAmerica’s Mirror on the Wall The AtlanticArticle
America’s Mirror on the Wall
Jan 28, 2018
6 min readJonah Goldberg: GOP Disdain For Big Cities Is A Losing Strategy Tribune Content Agency OpinionsArticle
Jonah Goldberg: GOP Disdain For Big Cities Is A Losing Strategy
Oct 28, 2020
“God bless real Michigan. God bless real America. God bless the greatest president in our lifetime, Donald Trump,” Ted Nugent recently declared at a Michigan rally. It’s ironic that Trump, the first president born and raised in New York City (or any
3 min readJonah Goldberg: GOP Disdain For Big Cities Is A Losing Strategy Tribune Content Agency OpinionsArticle
Jonah Goldberg: GOP Disdain For Big Cities Is A Losing Strategy
Oct 28, 2020
“God bless real Michigan. God bless real America. God bless the greatest president in our lifetime, Donald Trump,” Ted Nugent recently declared at a Michigan rally. It’s ironic that Trump, the first president born and raised in New York City (or any
3 min readMapping The State Of The Union The AtlanticArticle
Mapping The State Of The Union
Jan 18, 2015
3 min readWhy Nations Fail, America Edition NPRArticle
Why Nations Fail, America Edition
Jan 19, 2021
3 min readThe Founding Generation Showed Their Patriotism With Their Money The AtlanticArticle
The Founding Generation Showed Their Patriotism With Their Money
Feb 7, 2020
5 min readOne Nation, Two Economies Manhattan InstituteArticle
One Nation, Two Economies
Oct 24, 2018
5 min readHalfway Backing Beard American HistoryArticle
Halfway Backing Beard
Apr 26, 2022
In 1913 Charles A. Beard published An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution of the United States, a book that, Willard Sterne Randall writes, “rocked the foundations of normally staid and hagiographic American history.” By making the case that
1 min readIt’s Not the Greed—It’s the Inequality The AtlanticArticle
It’s Not the Greed—It’s the Inequality
Nov 18, 2019
6 min read
Reviews for The Land of Enterprise
Rating: 4.857142857142857 out of 5 stars
5/5
7 ratings0 reviews