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Olivier Zunz: “Ethics and Capitalism:ÌýThe Political Economy of American Philanthropyâ€�

Olivier Zunz

Nov. 5, 2021 | 6 p.m. MT | HUMN 135 | In-person and live stream | Free and open to the publicÌý

Part of the Benson Center's 2021-22 "Capitalism and Ethics" lecture series

°Ç¸ç³Ô¹Ï the Lecture

In this lecture, Zunz will discuss the large and cumulative impact that private gifts have had on national affairs.ÌýHe examines the ways philanthropic commitments have enlarged American democracy.ÌýThey have not been only a powerful means of expanding knowledge, promoting social movements, and formulating public policy, but they have also given Americans of diverse conditions a stronger voice in defining the common good.ÌýÌýÌýÌý

°Ç¸ç³Ô¹Ï the Speaker

Olivier Zunz is James Madison Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Virginia. He is the author of The Changing Face of Inequality, 1982, Making America Corporate, 1990, Why the American Century?, 1998, and Philanthropy in America: A History, 2012.Ìý He is also the editor of Reliving the Past, 1985, The Landscape of Modernity, 1992, and Social Contracts under Stress,2002. His work on Alexis de Tocqueville includes editing The Tocqueville Reader (with Alan Kahan), 2002, Tocqueville’s Democracy in America, 2004, Alexis de Tocqueville and Gustave de Beaumont in America, 2010, and Tocqueville’s Recollections (1850-1851), 2016. He has been a visiting professor at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales and the Collège de France, among many other lectureships abroad.Ìý

°Ç¸ç³Ô¹Ï the Series

This series exploresÌýthe complex relationship between capitalism and ethics in American culture and in Western civilization more broadly. Topics include capitalism and virtue, the history of American philanthropy, and the relationship between ethics and economics, and capitalism and religion. Lectures will beÌýin person and livestreamed. Please note thatÌýmasks are currently required in public indoor spaces on the CU °Ç¸ç³Ô¹Ï campusÌýregardless of vaccination status.ÌýRegistration information forthcoming. LecturesÌýavailable on our . Hosted by Alan S. Kahan.Ìý