Capital in the Twenty-First Century

Capital in the Twenty-First Century
Hardcover edition
AuthorThomas Piketty
Original titleLe Capital au XXIe siècle
TranslatorArthur Goldhammer
LanguageFrench
SubjectsPolitical economy, economic history, economic inequality, macroeconomics
Publisher
Publication date
August 2013
Published in English
April 15, 2014
Media typePrint (hardback)
Pages696
ISBN978-0674430006

Capital in the Twenty-First Century (French: Le Capital au XXIe siècle) is a book written by French economist Thomas Piketty. It focuses on wealth and income inequality in Europe and the United States since the 18th century. It was first published in French (as Le Capital au XXIe siècle) in August 2013; an English translation by Arthur Goldhammer followed in April 2014.[1]

The book's central thesis is that when the rate of return on capital (r) is greater than the rate of economic growth (g) over the long term, the result is concentration of wealth, and this unequal distribution of wealth causes social and economic instability. Piketty proposes a global system of progressive wealth taxes to help reduce inequality and avoid the vast majority of wealth coming under the control of a tiny minority.

At the end of 2014, Piketty released a paper where he stated that he does not consider the relationship between the rate of return on capital and the rate of economic growth as the only or primary tool for considering changes in income and wealth inequality. He also noted that r > g is not a useful tool for the discussion of rising inequality of labor income.[2]

On May 18, 2014, the English edition reached number one on The New York Times Best Seller list for best selling hardcover nonfiction[3] and became the greatest sales success ever of academic publisher Harvard University Press.[4] As of January 2015, the book had sold 1.5 million copies in French, English, German, Chinese, and Spanish.[5] The book is a worldwide success, with over 2.5 million copies sold by the end of 2017.[6]

The book was adapted into a feature documentary film, directed by New Zealand filmmaker Justin Pemberton,[7] and released in 2020.[8]

  1. ^ "Piketty's Capital: An Economist's Inequality Ideas Are All the Rage" by Megan McArdle, Bloomberg Businessweek, May 29, 2014
  2. ^ Piketty, Thomas (31 December 2014). "About Capital in the 21st Century" (PDF). American Economic Review. 105 (5): 48–53. doi:10.1257/aer.p20151060. S2CID 14772228. Retrieved 6 August 2017.
  3. ^ "Best Sellers May 18, 2014". The New York Times. 18 May 2014. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
  4. ^ Marc Tracy (24 April 2014). Piketty's 'Capital': A Hit That Was, Wasn't, Then Was Again: How the French tome has rocked the tiny Harvard University Press. The New Republic. Retrieved 27 April 2014.
  5. ^ "French economist and best-selling author Thomas Piketty on Thursday refused France's highest honour – the Légion d'Honneur". France 24. 1 January 2015. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
  6. ^ Le Monde supp. économie et entreprise, 15th December 2017, p. 2
  7. ^ "Thomas Piketty's 'Capital In The 21st Century' set for doc adaptation". May 12, 2016. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
  8. ^ Gleiberman, Owen (2020-05-02). "'Capital in the Twenty-First Century': Film Review". variety.com. Variety. Retrieved 2024-09-01.