Category: Interviews

The first interviewee I chose to connect with is a college educated woman from the Midwest who was born in 1970. She studied economics in college and owns a marketing and grant-writing business. These questions were something that we have discussed in the past in ways that weren’t so structured, so it was very interesting to get to see opinions based on specific questions. I sent her the whole list of questions beforehand, and her and I worked together to chose ones that she felt resonated with her.

I first started with the basic question I plan to begin all of my interviews with: How do you define capitalism? Capitalism is where an economy is driven by the market – demand and supply set prices, economic actors focus on profit, and companies and property are owned by individuals, not the state. What she responded was very textbook, but gave me the idea that there was a deeper level of knowledge surrounding this topic and would lead to answers that were illuminating. She also elaborated to say that some of her college experiences shaped how she thought about capitalism, which she elaborated on later in the interview.

Getting more personal, I asked: What is your role in capitalism? Where do you fit in? Responding, The individual’s main role in capitalism is as the consumer. But, in a capitalist society, an individual can also be an owner of private property, the founder and owner of a business, a producer, a competitor, and someone who accumulates personal wealth/capital. This was less about her experience personally and more about the role of individuals in general. In her life, capitalism allowed her to own her own business, own property, etc.

When asked, what role do you see capitalism in your daily life?, she responded similarly to other questions, stating: Capitalism is everywhere around us, in almost every decision we make. Of course, we are spoiled by the huge variety of goods and services available to us. Efficiencies in business (next day shipping from Amazon, for example) make it easier to consume. The supply chain struggles over the last two years have shown us how reliant we were as a society on the capitalist structures but how seemingly fragile they are in some ways (shortages of key goods, the ability of interruptions messing up the entire supply chain – ship stuck in canal). Who would have thought that the supply chain would still be so messed up after two years? Prices are going up for many items because of the increased pent-up demand, supply chain issues, etc., so it costs more to buy things. Even though wages have gone up during the pandemic, much of this wage growth is being erased by the inflation. Getting into the nitty gritty, these issues that she is talking about effect those who are reliant on a capitalist society to function as an individual.

Following, I asked: How do you think capitalism has evolved over the years? Knowing that she had moved through corporate life into owning a small business and working alongside non-profits, I knew that she would have a good answer. Responding with: An interesting thing to me is how America’s capitalist economy has gone from first being built on people making/producing things and buying and selling goods to second, an economy of services, and most recently, an economy of “non-things” – you can buy, sell, and own digital music and films, NFTs, companies are built on ideas, etc. This would look and seem very strange to someone born in 1900, who knew the biggest companies as ones that produced items like steel, oil, and farm equipment. Now, the largest companies include Facebook, Alphabet, Apple, Amazon, etc. – many of whom don’t make anything. This answer fit very well alongside our class topics as we move throughout the generations and changes of capitalism in American society. Even in the interviewee’s lifetime, things have changed dramatically in terms of what can generate capital and support; this is something I look forward to discovering over the course of this class.

She next answered: What do you think of other economic systems other than capitalism? This is something that we talk about a lot when we are together; what are the good and bad things that capitalism and other systems bring to the table? Can those systems be combined? Are there examples of that? Stating, I was fortunate enough to study in Vienna in college in 1990, shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the emergence of the Eastern Bloc countries from behind the Iron Curtain. The focus of the program was understanding the geopolitical and economic implications of these changes, and we spent time in former Soviet Bloc countries like Russia, Czechoslovakia, and Hungary. It was an opportunity to see communism/true socialism falling apart first hand. When we visited Russia, we were still required to have a Russian guide with our group the whole time, who managed what we saw, whom we spoke with, and didn’t allow us to be on our own. We were forced to change dollars or other western currency into rubles upon entering the country to provide the government with hard currency. We saw lines snaking around huge city blocks, and when we asked the guide what the lines were for, we would be told that if people saw a line, they just got into it (regardless of what it was for or if they needed the item), because there were shortages of virtually everything and even if a person didn’t have a use for an item, it could be sold on the black market. Anytime we bought anything in a market, the seller would always ask us for dollars – even they didn’t want the rubles because of the inflation and devaluation of the currency. I remember buying a piece of art and having to meet the seller on the next block to pay for it because it was illegal (I think) for ordinary citizens to have foreign currency. Based on this first-hand experience with communism, I can say that it wasn’t working well. Her experience in Vienna shaped how she viewed the different systems that different states used. Even the way that she describes some of her experiences really displays how different other states function. 

Responding to, what are the positive/negative aspects of capitalism, she got very passionate about something she is on the journey of unpacking in her own life: consumerism. For me personally, living in a capitalist society has allowed me to start my own consulting business (competing against others and earning profits from the business), own property (our home and land it sits on), and save money/accumulate capital. All of these are positive aspects. The most negative aspect to me about American capitalism is the societal focus on consumerism. The tendency is to want more, buy more, waste more, and overconsume. We want the newest, best, biggest, etc. I believe we’ve lost sight of needs vs wants and the focus on excess materialism is bad for mental health, saving, and the environment. As I get older, I find that I want less and am hoping to live in a more minimalist way. I believe that she very much associates capitalism with consumerism, which is true in a lot of ways. I would also go even further to say and agree that this “stuff” focused culture of consumerism and capitalism may make other social systems more appealing.

Overall, I would say that this interviewee has a very good idea of the role that capitalism plays in their life on a personal level, a business level, and at a larger scale state level as well. I was lucky to have an interview where the speaker was concise and helped to clarify any points that I was unsure about. I look forward to interviewing more people to hear and gather their thoughts as well!

Introduction

The interviewee is a collegiate senior whose passions include library science, writing, and literature. The individual has no training in economics or political philosophy in an orthodox or amateur manner. The interviewee comes from what the U.S. would colloquially deem a middle-class background. I’ve compiled excerpts of the more relevant sections of the interview below.

Question 1: How do you define capitalism?

“It’s an economic system where you- see the thing is I don’t know a lot about other economic systems so I don’t really know if I’m describing capitalism or something else. A system where you- I dunno, I feel very on the spot. I guess it’s your supposed to get paid based on the quality or quantity of the work you do. Some people get paid a lot and some people don’t and sometimes it’s arbitrary and that creates different economic classes.”

Question 2: How do you think capitalism has evolved over the years, if at all?

“Well I’m sure it started out as a good idea. I’m sure at some point it functioned properly and everyone benefitted the way they were supposed to, but now it’s evolved long beyond that and only serves a select few, leaving the rest of us suffering.”

Question 3: What is your role in capitalism?

“I mean, I guess I’m a consumer. I don’t really create anything so I don’t think I’m a producer. Like how they teach you in kindergarten that you’re one or the other. No one really elaborates on that.”

Question 4: Do you think of capitalism as beneficial to your life?

“Is one of the questions ‘do you think you benefit from capitalism’ because no, not really. I’ve never experienced any other system but if I wasn’t in a capitalist society I dunno if it would be worse. It’s certainly not great now.”

Question 5: What differentiates capitalism from other modes of production?

“I mean I don’t really know any other types of economic systems. I know socialism is an alternative but I don’t listen to you [Drew Underwood] enough to really define it. I guess I don’t really have an answer, I don’t really know enough about other modes of production. Teaching that sort of thing is extremely taboo. No school would teach it accurately, even college classes. I’d have to find that on my own.”

Analysis

The interviewee highlights a crucial and fundamental point: the dominant ideology seeks to seem like fact, and due to this many people lack the language to criticize or analyze capitalism even if they are frustrated with it. Unrest is either channeled through the vector of electorailsm which does not address the issues people are experiencing or simply chalked up to the product of the inscrutable forces that must dictate modern life. The market is so foreign to understanding that people simply assume that the economists are scientists telling them the truth about a natural phenomenon and not academics purporting a view that is not always in line with sociological or historical findings.

This is not a moral failing or the result of sloth. Take the interviewee, who is by all indication a kind, intelligent, and savvy person. They do not lack the language because they are inattentive or reluctant to improve themselves, the cultural hegemony is just inimical to understanding alternative systems beyond vague bad feelings about them and propagandic platitudes. This does not only apply to leftism, the classical foe of liberalism, but precapitalist production as well. If one asked your average St. Louis resident about the Ming economy, they would likely not be able to make comparisons beyond vague broad strokes (even if the Ming economy was first explained to them). This is even the case among economists to a certain extent.

Another key concept to note is that even the understanding of capitalism is fairly rudimentary to a collegiate level student. Granted those in economics programs are likely more familiar (even if this familiarity starts from a system taken as fact), but the interviewee could only think up an A->B interaction taught to them in elementary school. It is worth thinking about why this is and what mechanisms encourage this. Furthermore, why?

CA is a 24-year old white male from Northern Virginia, who works as a Software Engineer. Before beginning his career as a Software Engineer, he received his Bachelors and Masters degrees in Computer Science from George Mason University. CA had a middle-class upbringing in Northern Virginia with college educated parents who both worked in the medical field. CA noted that his political alignment is moderate, and that he is interested in economics and the history of Capitalism but is not a pro with it. He had taken some economics classes in college but most of his knowledge is from personal research and how he enjoys looking at everything through an analytical lense.

I decided to interview CA because we typically do not agree on many economic or political ideas. I thought it would be interesting to hear from someone who I typically do not engage in such conversation about, and is typically far more analytical in nature then I am about many topics. 

How do you define Capitalism?

I began the interview with the question of “How do you define Capitalism?”. CA stated that “Capitalism is an economic system where businesses are owned and controlled by private owners instead of owned by the government”, and that “within the system there is competition to gain the most profit”. Once this definition was given I asked him if was he familiar or comfortable in discussing the concept of Capitalism, and when he said “Yes”, I asked when he first became familiar with it. CA noted that he remembers first becoming familiar with the concept of Capitalism when he was around late- middle school / early- high school, but that he had heard about it before then but didn’t fully get it. 

What role do you see Capitalism playing in your daily life?

When asked this question, CA stated that Capitalism plays a big role in his life because it encourages companies to provide more advanced goods and services for our daily lives that he gets to consume, and that as an employee of a company he is a small part of the system (noting “supply and demand of labor”). CA further stated that “Most things you see are at least somewhat in result of Capitalism”, and that while he doesn’t believe 100% of our lives are impacted by Capitalism because we don’t live in a 100% Capitalistic society, that at least 70-80% of our lives are impacted by it because of the nature of Capitalism and how the economy works in the US. 

Do you believe that Capitalism is inherent to society?

CA believes that in many ways capitalism is inherent to society because as humans we naturally want to provide as much as we can for our families and ourselves, and that in order to do so we want as many resources and options as possible and that in order to obtain those resources there is competition for them. He notes that in many ways Capitalism is “the natural way of doing things”. I followed up this question asking him, “Why do you think this?”. He answered that it is human nature to survive and that if there aren’t enough resources out there or there is a limited number of resources, as humans we strive to create those resources, and once we have those we will continue wanting more and more variety of resources to benefit from. 

How do you think Capitalism interacts with the media?

I asked the question of “How do you think Capitalism interacts with the media?” because I know that CA consumes media differently than I do (especially social media where he follows different people and trends), and I was interested to hear how his interpretation could be different than mine. 

The first thing that CA said when I asked this question was “targeted ads”, and that ads were one of the biggest things he thinks of when he thinks about the interaction between Capitalism and the media. He stated that since there is so much competition between companies to sell their products to people, that they have to create advertisements for people to think that they have the best product, and that nowadays he sees it mainly through targeted ads to consumers. He also talked about the impact of Capitalism on news media, discussing how the news can push specific products or ideas so that the public will want to support that product more. He gave an example of how this is happening with the marijuana industry. He talked about how people are investing so much money into these companies and many different companies are being created with similar products, but their products are not even legal everywhere and cannot even be consumed in every state yet. However, news media and other forms of media are discussing these companies and the debate of whether or not marijuana should be legal and in what capacities, which influences public opinion on the debate and pushing specific narratives. In some cases, it could be pushing the idea that it is a good thing to be legalized everywhere and if that media company is in support of a specific company, that specific company now benefits from the media push. He ends this example by arguing that it is obviously not 100% Capitalism in that example because the government does and would interfere on what is and is not legal with marijuana products, but that public opinion on goods and services can and will be skewed based on what the media says. 

What are some positive aspects of Capitalism?

CA gave a list of positive aspects when asked this question. Those aspects being: efficient workers, usually increased GDP within a country, usually has lower taxes (has negatives too of course), usually lower consumer prices for goods because companies are being competitive, and investment in companies. He said that the biggest things that are positive aspects about Capitalism are that usually people are willing to work harder because they need to, that because there is so much competition between companies there are lower prices for goods, and that there is newer and better technology as a result of Capitalism. I asked him if he feels like he benefits from the impact of Capitalism on technology because he works in a tech field, and he said 100%, and that another pro of Capitalism is that it benefits people performing high-skilled labor.

What are some negative aspects of Capitalism?

After discussing how people performing high-skilled labor can benefit from Capitalism, CA stated that a negative of Capitalism is that it hurts people performing low-skilled labor. People performing high-skilled labor will inherently be more privileged than those performing low-skilled labor. Some other negative aspects of Capitalism that he stated were: wealth gap, the focus on consumption and how we use a lot of resources that we probably shouldn’t be needing to use, questionable welfare systems, in some cases monopolies, and possible tension within society. CA further argues that a full Capitalistic society is very bad and that there needs to be balance and regulation in order for Capitalism to exist peacefully. 

How do you think Capitalism has evolved over the years?

CA stated that the definition of Capitalism has not changed but Capitalism as a whole has changed within our country, and that we become more or less capitalistic depending on who is in office. CA believes we have become less capitalistic and have been leaning towards different systems with more government influence within businesses. He discussed how he heard there were talks about having our internet be government ran instead of privately ran- and how this shows a shift away from more capitalistic ideals in the US because the government wants to keep the necessary things for life more federalized. 

How do you think your parents view capitalism in comparison to you?

When asked this question CA did not seem to have a distinct opinion on how his parents viewed Capitalism, other than they obviously benefit from the variety of goods that they can buy as a result. However, he did note that he sees it more at the root of how Capitalism is a system where people have to fight for what they want in the sense of working hard and smart, and it being a root of human nature- then they probably do. He stated that his father is more pro-capitalist for the medical field than he is because his father works in the field and has critiques and experiences that he will never fully understand because he works in a different field. Overall, he was not very sure because he had never really discussed it with his parents before. 

Are people’s views of capitalism generationally different?

The last question that I asked CA was “Are people’s views of Capitalism generationally different?”, and he said “Yes”. He elaborated explaining how many people now (most people at least) have really only experienced a pretty good quality of life in terms of medical care, technology, air conditioning, heating, etc., that people in the past did not have access to, and that as a whole we take those things for granted because we now have better access to reasonable prices and inventions because of how much competition there is. We now live in a time when we can get products fast and at a good price compared to the past when it was a slower, more expensive process. He also notes that this generation takes a lot more for granted and not many people want to look back at the history books and see how things were in the past in different countries that older generations were scared of coming to the US (such as Communism).

Interview 1:

She responded, “these are not easy questions,” when asked whether the system of capitalism was beneficial. The person interviewed is 84 years old. Her perspective on capitalism has been shaped by a changing world and the experiences of her mother and father. “My mother had to go to work instead of high school,” she remembered. Her mother, born around 1904, lived an experience that is hard to imagine an American child having today. The interviewee’s mother’s mother died when she was young. Her father worked in the city and did not have the time to raise a daughter, so she lived with her grandmother who did not speak much English. Capitalism undoubtedly shaped her life. The interviewee’s mother was thirteen when she went to a business school and started working full-time at a meat-packing plant as a secretary. “Even though she wasn’t educated she was smart. That’s why she got the job she did,” the interviewee claimed. Then she asked, “Can you imagine being a fourteen-year-old hopping on the trolley to go to work every day?” The image of a child that young having a full-time job feels so far removed from the experiences of the majority of American children today. “I think she liked it though,” she explained, “it’s hard for me to think it was a bad thing for her.” Considering the period, it was not the worst thing a child could be doing. “It made her grow up fast,” the interviewee added. She never reflected on whether or not growing up fast was a good or bad thing, though the tone of her voice indicated indifference. “I think of all the systems Capitalism is the best one we have,” the interviewee stated, “though there are flaws, I think a free market means free people.” She then asked me, “do you agree?” Though her ideas were concise, she seemed hesitant in her responses, almost afraid to say the wrong thing. “I think Capitalism would not be possible today without the changes that have happened.” Continuing this thought she explained, “The government is much more involved than it used to be, which overall I believe is a good thing, though you don’t want the government overly involved.” Elaborating she used Sweeden as an example, “it was once very socialist, which I think was bad for the country, they are much more Capitalist now.” Her views on Capitalism are shaped by the opportunities that have shifted since her mother was a child and increasing government involvement. In her eyes government involvement has improved the American quality of life, though she believes too much involvement would be detrimental to personal freedoms. She ended her interview by explaining, “Capitalism and all, it is walking on a fine line, and who we elect matters.” Overall, though she noted flaws within the Capitalist system, she explained it as a system of opportunity and change. She believes the desires of an average person remain influential in a capitalist society and that capitalism ensures individual freedom.

-Helen Dhue

For my third interview, I discussed the nature of capitalism with a peer of mine, BO.  A sophomore here at UMW, BO is a female and identifies as African American.  I was quite interested to see how BO’s answers would either reinforce or differ from SM’s and SL’s (my first two interviewees) perspective on capitalism.  BO identifies as middle class (in terms of her income), and she grew up in Alexandria, Virginia.  She was raised by two college educated parents and her parents always emphasized the importance of a college education. She works multiple jobs in order to help pay for her education here at UMW.

Continue reading Capitalism in our DNA

My final interviewee is MS, a 22-year old junior here at UMW. He comes from a white, middle-class family, and lives in Centreville, Virginia.

 

How would you define capitalism?

“A political and economic system based on privately owned companies, a privately managed economy. ”

 

What is your personal experience with capitalism?

“Economically, I’ve been pretty lucky, I was born into a middle-class family with a fair amount of wealth. So for most of my life, we’ve never wanted for money. This changed recently when my mom lost her job and went on disability. I think that’s a good example of how, in capitalism, when people become useless, they fall down the ladder and are left by the wayside. When people’s merits are equal to their work though, they rise up the ladder quickly; my mom started as a copier at this company, and became corporate manager before her disability.”

 

What are some alternative systems to capitalism?

“Well, there’s communism, which is ideal in theory. But people always want power, and a communist system doesn’t change that. People can’t always be treated as the same, because they don’t want to, some people want to climb to the top. People compete for their place in  society. Socialism, which is a less idealistic version of the same thing, is kind of getting a good reputation in parts of Europe now, to an extent. But I don’t think it would work in the current American society, because people here go crazy whenever anything even resembling socialism is brought up, and use socialism as an insult. There’s also mercantilism.”

Can you describe mercantilism?

“Oh, yeah. I’m not too sure of the details, but basically the country was in control of its own finances, it focused on trade, and the companies were run by the country for their own interest. It worked for big empires that traded mostly within their own territory, like Britain.”

So it was like a state version of capitalism, then?

“Yeah, pretty much.”

How has capitalism influenced America?

“It’s had an absolutely major effect. We basically ended creating a global, interconnected economic system that incorporates the finances of all countries. This kind of harkens back to the robber barons of the Gilded Age.”

So you see capitalism as something of an American creation, then?

“No, but we took it to a whole new level, the logical extreme with our corporations, which have become super-conglomerates with global influence and interests. But no, we weren’t the first to practice capitalism.”

What do you think are capitalism’s origins, either globally or in the United States?

“I think people wanted to escape from a feudal sort of system, where they did not control their own financial destinies. I think it particularly arises after the Enlightenment period, and starts as a working philosophy after that.”

So in reference to the feudalism, do you think there’s a move towards capitalism beginning after the Middle Ages?

“Yeah, it takes a long time to get to what we today recognize as capitalism, but I think that’s sort of where it begins.”

When is capitalism first articulated as any kind of coherent system or ideology?

“I have to say that I don’t know here.”

How do you think social issues have been affected by capitalism?

“I think they’re totally entwined.  Like, today, social agendas are pushed by private companies, and large corporations use their money and influence to push their agendas in the government. People don’t really like corporations, and they also don’t like it when colleges act like businesses and it costs loads of money to go to college, we’re the only country that does it like that.  Today, people are angry with capitalism, and they’re sort of held down by a glass ceiling between them and the tiny super-elite class. Capitalism was good for society a couple of hundred years ago probably, but today, society is controlled by a small elite via capitalism. I’d prefer a meritocracy”

You’re talking about the One Percent, basically?

“Yeah.”

Do you think capitalism is not meritocratic?

“Not anymore. Now it’s mostly a small elite who pass on their wealth to their children, and you get to the top through influence and connections instead of, well, merit. Instead of leaving your fortune to your children, I think a more productive way of thinking is what you leave behind to humanity.”

Has capitalism changed over time?

“It has definitely changed over time. It started as a hopeful sort of ideology, with people controlling their own financial destinies. Now, people are constrained by and have to worry about things like fluctuating job markets, deciding early on in life what career field to specialize in, and those sort of concerns drive their lives. Capitalism in its modern form has created a society that’s perpetually in debt, with the capitalization of education. Eventually, this sort of thing will lead to the glass ceiling between people and the upper class breaking.”

Do you see that as a bad thing?

“No, but it would disrupt the social order.”

Do you think capitalism is a natural fit for human nature?

“Yeah, I think it does pretty much fit with a sort of free will ideology, which is something that even people like religions and secularists usually agree on. But it’s flawed in that it leads to the accumulation of wealth by the most successful, and wealth grants power, and too much power subverts free will. Capitalism is flawe, but it does fit certain aspects of human nature. So do other systems though, so capitalism doesn’t necessarily fit more than those.”

How has capitalism been taught to you during your education?

“I did not receive enough education about capitalism, frankly. People in general aren’t educated enough about capitalism as a system, which is kind of why I was drawing blanks on a couple of your questions. Capitalism as a system or philosophy is sort of hyper-specialized into the business field and classes, I think people in general need a more well-rounded, Renaissance sort of education that includes capitalism.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

My final interviewee is SL. SL has a degree in Fire Sciences. He is 25 years old and currently works as a firefighter and paramedic in Missouri. His openly admitted right before the interview that he was unsure that his knowledge of Capitalism would be sufficient to satisfy the interview. The opposite ended up being true, as his answers give a great deal of insight into what the average American thinks of Capitalism. All answers are paraphrased by myself unless otherwise designated by quotation marks.

Q: What is Capitalism? Could you define it for me?

SL: Capitalism is the economic philosophy or system that the country [U.S.A.] runs one. It’s the free market system America uses today. “But it isn’t true Capitalism, it isn’t its pure form.”

Continue reading It’s about achieving

BB is a 19 year old bi racial male, who recently graduated from high school in his hometown of Fredericksburg, VA. He is currently employed at a popular fast-food chain restaurant in the same area.

Continue reading The Free Market and the American Dream

FA is a 31 years old male from Brazil. He is currently in the process of becoming a permanent resident of the United States and will eventually become a U.S. citizen. He identifies himself as a Latin American. FA has an MBA and is the Practice Manager for Application Development at his company, which in other words means that he manages software development projects. FA currently would classify himself as middle class or upper middle class. Growing up in Brazil, his family was lower middle class.

How would you define capitalism?

An open market to all different organizations or individuals with an aspiration to prosper. It’s an open window to anyone who wants to maximize their gains. I think that there are a lot of things related to capitalism, like political policies and governments that will try to control aspects of the market. Governments will interfere with extreme capitalism and other governments will avoid capitalism to provide equal share to people.

How has capitalism been taught to you at different levels of your education?

I learned about capitalism in history classes in high school and middle school. Teachers would talk about different governmental systems. So capitalism was taught to us as a way that governments would dictate how companies and individuals would develop the market or economy in that region. Basically I was taught how the different forms of capitalism compared to each other. How capitalist in Brazil compared to the extreme capitalism in States and the socialist capitalist in Europe.

We also learned how capitalism evolved through supply and demand. How it  comes with a sense of supply and demand.

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Continue reading Not Necessarily Natural

JB is a is a 59 year old white woman. She graduated college with a degree in accounting and then attended law school. JB practiced law for almost 20 years and is currently a homemaker who is active in her church and community. After the interview, she told me that she doesn’t think about capitalism often, but she’s certain she would miss it if it were gone. Continue reading Taken for Granted