For almost the entire first quarter of the twentieth century, Thomas Nixon Carver taught the material of this course. According to the Harvard Annual President’s Report for 1919-20 (p. 90), the course, which covered utopias, varieties of socialism and anarchism, and Henry George’s Single Land Tax, was attended by 10 graduate students; 13 seniors, 29 juniors, 11 Sophomores, 1 Freshman; 14 students from other departments/divisions.
Course final examination questions are available here.
A short-annotated bibliography for the economics of socialism was prepared by Carver and published in 1910 in A guide to reading in social ethics and allied subjects; lists of books and articles selected and described for the use of general readers.
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Course Description
In the Official Register of Harvard University (Vol. XVI, October 30, 1919, No. 45) Division of History, Government, and Economics, 1919-20 (Second Edition, p. 64): The course title for Economics 7 given in the second term of 1919-20 was “The Single Tax, Socialism, Anarchism” and met Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays at 10 a.m.
“A critical study of the theories which underlie some of the more radical programmes of social reform. An examination also of the social utility of private property in its various forms; also some attention to the concept of justice in economic relations; the concept of progress; the significance of conservatism and radicalism.”
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ECONOMICS 7b
SOCIALISM
Starred references are required
GENERAL WORKS, HISTORICAL
1. *R. T. Ely. French and German Socialism.
2. Bertrand Russell. German Social Democracy.
3. John Rae. Contemporary Socialism.
4. Thomas Kirkup. A History of Socialism.
5. William Graham. Socialism, New and Old.
6. Jessica B. Peixotto. The French Revolution and Modern French Socialism.
7. Wm. B. Guthrie. Socialism Before the French Revolution.
8. M. Hillquit. History of Socialism in the United States.
9. Jessie W. Hughan. American Socialism of the Present Day.
GENERAL WORKS, EXPOSITORY AND CRITICAL
1. *O. D. Skelton. Socialism, A Critical Analysis.
2. J. E. Le Rossignol. Orthodox Socialism.
3. Albert Schaeffle. The Quintessence of Socialism.
4. Albert Schaeffle. The Impossibility of Social Democracy.
5. R. T. Ely. Socialism: an Examination of its Nature, Strength and Weakness.
6. James Mackaye. The Economy of Happiness.
7. Henry M. Hyndman. The Economics of Socialism.
8. Gustave Simonson. A Plain Examination of Socialism.
9. Werner Sombart. Socialism and the Social Movement in the Nineteenth Century.
10. Émile Vandervelde. Collectivism.
11. R. Flint. Socialism.
12. W. D. P. Bliss. A Handbook of Socialism.
13. Jessie W. Hughan. The Facts of Socialism.
14. E. de Laveleye. The Socialism of Today.
15. E. Böhm-Bawerk. Karl Marx—The End of his System.
16. W. E. Walling. The Larger Aspects of Socialism.
17. S. P. Orth. Socialism and Democracy in Europe.
18. John Spargo. Socialism.
TYPES OF SOCIALISTIC PROPAGANDA
I. IDEALISTIC. The appeal is made to all classes on the ground of piety, a sense of justice, or of sympathy for the laboring classes.
A. Religious. The religious motive is invoked in behalf of human brotherhood.
1. Lamennais. Les Paroles d’un Croyant.
2. Washington Gladden. Tools and the Man.
3. Josiah Strong. Our Country.
4. Josiah Strong. The New Era.
B. Fulminations. A thundering discontent with things as they are, with no very definite program for improvement.
1. William Morris, Poet, Artist, Socialist. Edited by Francis Watts Lee. A collection of the socialistic writings of Morris.
2. John Ruskin, the Communism of John Ruskin. Edited by W. D. P. Bliss. Selected chapters from Unto this Last, The Crown of Wild Olive, and Fors Clavigera.
3. Thomas Carlyle, The Socialism and Unsocialism of Thomas Carlyle. Edited by W. 4. D. P. Bliss. Selected chapters from Carlyle’s Various Works.
Socialism and everything resembling it were even more abhorrent to Carlyle than the present system.
C. Utopian. Pictures of ideal Commonwealths.
1. Plato’s Republic.
2. Sir Thomas More. Utopia.
3. Francis Bacon. New Atlantis.
4. Tommaso Campanella. The City of the Sun. (Numbers 2, 3, and 4 may be found in convenient form in Morley’s Ideal Commonwealth.)
5. Etienne Cabot. Voyage en Icarie.
6. William Morris. News from Nowhere.
7. Edward Bellamy. Looking Backward.
8. Laurence Gronlund. The Cooperative Commonwealth.
9. H. G. Wells. A Modern Utopia.
D. Experimental.
There were men and women who had so much confidence in socialism as to believe that it was only necessary to start it to insure its success. They believed that if the world could be given an example of socialism in operation, it would be led to adopt it.
1. Charles Nordhoff. The Communistic Societies of the United States.
2. Karl Kautsky. Communism in Central Europe in the Time of the Reformation.
3. *W. A. Hinds. American Communities.
4. J. H. Noyes. History of American Socialisms.
5. J. T. Codman. Brook Farm Memoirs.
6. Albert Shaw. Icaria.
7. G. B. Landis. The Separatists of Zoar.
8. E. O. Randall. History of the Zoar Society.
E. Opportunist.
1. *Bernard Shaw and others. The Fabian Essays in Socialism.
2. The Fabian Tracts.
3. Edward Bernstein. Ferdinand Lassalle.
4. Sidney and Beatrice Web. Problems of Modern Industry.
5. E. C. K. Gonner. The Socialist Philosophy of Rodbertus.
6. E. C. K. Gonner. The Socialist State.
7. Vladimir G. Simkhovitch. Marxism versus Socialism.
8. J. Ramsay Macdonald. Socialism.
9. Sidney A. Reeve. The Cost of Competition.
10. Edward Bernstein. Evolutionary Socialism.
11. H. G. Wells. New Worlds for Old.
II. MARXIAN. Believing that every man will work for his own material interests, and that in any capitalistic society, the laboring classes must sooner or later outnumber all others, the appeal is made, not to idealistic sentiments, but to the conscious self interest of the laboring classes. In their own interest they are to overthrow the present economic system and so up a socialistic system.
A. Theoretical
1. Karl Marx. Capital.
2. Frederic Engels. Socialism, Utopian and Scientific.
3. A. Labriola. Essays on the Materialistic Conception of History.
B. Propagandist
(a) Political. Reliance is placed upon the voting power of the masses.
1. Karl Marx and Frederic Engels. The Manifest of the Communist Party.
2. Karl Kautsky. The Social Revolution.
(b) Militant. Reliance is placed upon the physical power of the masses. Ignore the state! The ballot is too slow!
(1) Bolshevist.
1. Austin Lewis. The Militant Proletariat.
2. Beatty, B. Red heart of Russia. Century, 1918.
3. Bryant, L. Six red monthsin Russia. Doran, 1918.
4. Petrunkevich, A. I. et al. Russian Revolution. Harvard University Press, 1918,
5. Radzwill, C. Rasputin and the Russian revolution. Lane, 1918.
6. Russell, C. E. Unchained Russia. Appleton, 1918.
7. Sack, A. J. Birth of the Russian Democracy. Russian Information Bureau, 233 Broadway, N. Y.
8. Trotzky, Leon (Bronshtein, L. D.). The Bolsheviki and World Peace, N. Y., 1918.
9. Trotzky, Leon (Bronshtein, L. D.). Our Revolution; Essays on Working Class and International Revolution, N.Y., 1918.
(2) Syndicalist.
1. Challange, Felicien. Syndicalisme revolutionaire et Syndicalisme reformiste. Paris. F. Alcan. 1909. 156 pp.
2. Delivet, Emile. Les employées et leurs corporations. Paris. River. 1909.
3. Dufor, ——-—-. Le syndicalisme et la prochaine revolution. Paris. M. Rivier. 1913.
4. Estey, J. Revolutionary syndicalism; an exposition and a criticism. London. P. S. King. 1913.
5. Garriguet, L. L’Évolution actuelle de socialisme en France. Paris. 1912.
6. Harley, John H. Syndicalism. London & N. Y. Dodge Pub. 1912. 94pp.
7. Kirkaldy, Adam W. Economics and syndicalism. University Press. Cambridge. 1914. 140 pp.
8. MacDonald, James R. Syndicalism, a critical examination. 1913. Chicago. Open Court Pub. 74 pp.
9. Pataud, Emile. Syndicalism and the cooperating commonwealth. Preface by Kropotkin. Oxford. 1913. 240 pp.
10. Snowden, Philip. Socialism and Syndicalism. London. 1913. 262 pp.
11. Spargo, John. Syndicalism, industrial unionism and socialism. N. Y. Huebsch. 1913. 243 pp.
12. Ware, Fabian. The worker and his country. London. 1912. 288 pp.
(3) The I. W. W.
1. Brissenden, Paul F. The launching of the Industrial Workers of the World. University of California Press. 1913. 82 pp. contains bibliography.
2. *Brooks, John G. American syndicalism. N. Y. Macmillan. 1913. 264 pp.
3. De Leon, Daniel. Preamble of the I. W. W. address at Union Temple, Minneapolis. July 10, 1905. N. Y. Labor News Co. 48 pp.
4. Trautman, William E. Direct. action and sabotage. Pittsburg Socialist News Co. 1912. 43 pp.
ANARCHISM
I. PHILOSOPHICAL. A more or less reasoned belief that the abolition of government, especially of government by force, would remove most of the ills of society. Clear in its perception that all government rests upon force; unclear in its reasoning to the conclusion that the use of force is wrong; divided in opinion as to the results of abolishing government.
A. Anarchist Communism. Seeing that property rights are the creation of government, it is concluded that the abolition of government would automatically abolish property and restore communism, and that the masses would pounce upon and destroy anyone who thereafter dared to call anything his own.
1. P. J. Proudhon. What is Property?
2. William Godwin. Political Justice.
3. Peter Kropotkin. Memoirs of a. Revolutionist.
4. Peter Kropotkin. The Scientific Basis of Anarchy. Nineteenth Century, 21: 218.
5. Elisée Reclus. Evolution et revolution.
6. William M. Salter. Anarchy or goveminent? An inquiry in fundamental government.
7. W. H. Van Ornum. Why Government at all?
8. Ernst V. Zenker. Anarchism; a criticism and history of the anarchist theory.
9. Paul Boilley – Les Trois Socialismes; Anarchisme, Collectivism. Reformisme.
10. Peter Kropotkin. La Science moderne et L’Anarchie.
11. Peter Kropotkin. The Anarchy. Nineteenth Century, 22: 149.
12. *Leo Tolstoi. The Slavery of Our Times.
13. Elissee Reclus. Anarchy. Contemporary Review. 14: 627.
14. Josiah Warren. Equitable Commerce.
15. Josiah Warren. True Civilization as Immediate Necessity.
B. Exaggerated Individualism. There should be no restraint either moral or legal, upon the strong whose “right” to govern and exploit the weak is the only natural or divine right there is. Nature abhors weakness and it is the mission of the strong to exterminate the weak, to the end that weakness may cease to exist and that strength alone may survive. Moral and legal codes are the inventions of the weak to protect themselves from the strong in order that weakness may fill the world with its own spawn.
1. *Max Stirner (pseudonym for Kaskar Schmidt). Der Einzige und sein Eigenthum.
2. Friederich Nietzsche. Also sprach Zarathustra.
3. Friederich Nietzsche. Jenseits von Gut and Böse.
4. James G. Huneker. Egoists: A Book of Supermen.
II. EMOTIONAL. A mere explosive protest against all forms of authority, particularly against the police power and other visible manifestations of authority.
1. Mikhail Bakunin. Dieu et l’Etat.
2. Emma Goldman. Anarchism and other Essays.
3. Paul Eltzbacher. Anarchism.
4. R. Hunter and R. Wiles. Violence and the Labor Movement.
5. H. Krouse. The Anarchist Constitution.
6. John H. Mackay. The Anarchists; a picture of civilization at the close of the 19th century.
7. A. R. Parsons. Anarchism; its philosophy and scientific basis as defined by some of its apostles.
8. B. R. Tucker. Anarchism; the attitude of anarchism toward industrial combinations.
9. United States Department of Justice. Transmission through the Mails of Anarchistic publications. Message from the President. Washington. 1908.
THE SINGLE TAX
All public revenues shall be raised from a single tax on land values.
1. *Henry George. Progress and Poverty.
2. Henry George. Our Land and Land Policy.
3. Alfred Russell Wallace. Land Nationalization.
4. Thomas G. Shearman. Natural Taxation.
5. Louis F. Post. The Single Tax.
6. C. B. Fillebrown. A Single Tax Catechism.
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Source: Harvard University Archives. HUC 8522.2.1. Syllabi, course outlines and reading lists in Economics, 1895-2003. Box 1. Folder: 1919-1920.
Image Source: Harvard Album 1915.