Thorstein B. Veblen [1857-1929] Page at Maison d'Être Philosophy Bookstore

Sociologist-economist Thorstein B. Veblen coined the term 'conspicuous consumption',
which has reached full expression a hundred years later in the millions of people
wearing t-shirts displaying the name of a product that they cannot otherwise afford.

Thorstein Bunde Veblen was born 30 July 1857 in Wisconsin. The family later moved to a farmstead in Minnesota, adjacent to what is now the Nerstrand 'Big Woods' State Park. Of Norwegian heritage, he spoke all his life with that accent. He attended Carleton College and Johns Hopkins, receiving his PhD at Yale in 1884. But he was unable to find work as a teacher, and lived for a while on his father's farm, reading voraciously. In 1888, he married Ellen Rolfe, niece of the president of Carleton College, against the wishes of her family. He returned to school in 1891, to Cornell, and by 1892 was an assistant professor at newly-founded Chicago University. He was founder & editor of the "Journal of Political Economy" from 1892-1905, writing many essays that attracted major respect. But during that time he was involved in scandal and was forced to resign from the university.

Veblen's central work, "The Theory of The Leisure Class" (1899) brought him fame; its theories are still relevant and taught in many universities around the world. This scathing indictment of capitalism describes the class struggle as being not between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat (per Marx/Engels), but between businessmen – bankers, lawyers, brokers, managers – and industry: engineers, designers, technicians, and labor; in short, between making money and producing goods. His "Theory of Business Enterprise" (1904) further widened his renown.

Veblen was hired at Stanford University in 1906, which he left under another cloud of scandal in 1909. He was divorced by his first wife in 1911, and became a lecturer at the University of Missouri, to 1918. The year 1914 was busy: he published "Instinct of Workmanship", was involved in further scandal, and married divorcee Anne Fessenden Bradley. While in Missouri, he also published "Imperial Germany" (1915) and "Inquiry Into The Nature of Peace" (1917).

He took his family to Washington D.C. in 1918, but he was ill fit for a job in government. They soon moved to New York City, where Veblen lectured at the New School for Social Research, also continuing to write and publish: "Higher Learning In America" (1918), "Vested Interests" (1919), and "The Industrial System & The Captains of Industry" (1919). His second wife died in 1920. He published "The Engineers & the Price System" (1921). His last book, "Absentee Ownership" was published in 1923, and was below the standard of his prior work.
After leaving the New School in 1926, Veblen stopped teaching. He moved in with his step-daughter, to a cabin in the hills above Stanford, where he lived until his death on 3 August 1929.

Veblen's influence has grown and remains important. Howard Scott's Technocracy movement of the 1930s, the publication of "Essays" (1934), and Wesley Claire Mitchell's collection of more essays, "What Veblen Taught", have been followed by many biographical and critical works, the most recent appearing a hundred years after the publication of Veblen's "The Theory of The Leisure Class".

"The Blond Race and The Aryan Culture" lecture [1913] by Thorstein B. Veblen
Univ of Missouri Bulletin 1913 transcript available as free online flip-book at Internet Archive

Family & Friends & Scholars
Thorstein Bunde Veblen was born in 1857 in Wisconsin; he died in 1929 at age 72 in California.

third wife Anne Fessenden Bradley Veblen [-1920] - married 1914, died 1920
step-daughter Ann Bradley []
step-daughter Becky Bradley [] moved with him to Menlo Park, California

nephew mathematician Oswald Veblen [1880–1960]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oswald_Veblen

Veblen expert Joseph Dorfman [1904?-1991]
Emeritus Professor of Economics at Columbia University in New York City

sociologist & Veblen expert Stjepan Mestrovic
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stjepan_Me%C5%A1trovi%C4%87

sociologist & Veblen expert David Reisman [1909-2002]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Reisman#Further_reading

Veblen expert L. Rick Tilman lives in Flagstaff, Arizona
Professor Emeritus of Public Administration at University of Nevada - Las Vegas
now Adjunct Professor of History at Northern Arizona University

here on the Thorstein B. Veblen [1857-1929] Page at Maison d'Être Philosophy Bookstore

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	"The Theory of The Leisure Class: An Economic Study of Institutions" [1899] Kindle Edition from Amazon Digital Services [3/2013] for $1.00 {sic} Kindle Edition from Housemartin Classics [1/2014] for 99¢ {sic} Dover Thrift 8x5 pb [6/94] for $3.15 Modern Library 8x5¼ pb [11/2001] out of print/used Penguin Classics pb [3/94] for $14.40 IndyPublish 9x6 pb [12/2002] out of print/used IndyPublish 9x6 hardcover [12/2002] for $18.99 book entry at Wikipedia
	"The Theory of Business Enterprise" [1904] Transaction Publrs pb [6/78] for $29.95 Transaction Publrs hardcover [6/78] out of print/used A.M.Kelley hardcover [6/65] for $46.99
	"The Instinct of Workmanship & The State of The Industrial Arts" [1914] Transaction Publrs pb [12/89] for $29.95
	"Imperial Germany & The Industrial Revolution" [1915] Kindle Edition from Amazon Digital Services [4/2013] for $1.09 {sic} Transaction Publrs 9x6 pb [7/90] for $31.30 Kessinger Publng 9x6 hardcover [9/2010] for $33.08
	"An Inquiry Into The Nature of Peace & The Terms of Its Perpetuation" [1917] Transaction Publrs pb [5/98] for $29.95
	"The Higher Learning In America: A Memorandum On The Conduct of Universities By Business Men" [1918] Transaction Publrs pb [11/92] for $24.95
	"The Vested Interests & The Common Man" [1919] Transaction Publrs 9x6 pb [10/2001] for $24.95

	"The Place of Science In Modern Civilization & Other Essays" [1918] with a new Introduction by Warren J. Samuels Cosimo Classics 9x6 pb [3/2007] for 27.54 Transaction Publrs pb [1/90] for $31.94
	"The Engineers & The Price Structure" [1921] Kindle Edition from Amazon Digital Services [5/2013] for $1.09 Cosimo Classics 8x5 pb [9/2006] for $10.99 Transaction Publrs 9x6 pb [6/83] for $24.37 Kessinger Publng 9¾x7 hardcover [9/2010] for $23.72
	"Absentee Ownership & Business Enterprise In Recent Times: The Case of America" [1923] with new Introduction by Marion J. Levy, Jr. Transaction Publrs 9x6 pb [8/96] for $31.47
	"The Laxdaela Saga: An Icelandic Classic" translation by Veblen [1925] B.W. Huebsch, Inc. hardcover [1925] out of print/used B.W. Huebsch, Inc. hardcover [1925] out of print/used Translation by Magnus Magnusson Viking 7¾x5 pb [11/69] out of print/50+ used
	"Essays In Our Changing Order" [1934] Transaction Publrs pb [2/98] for $31.94 A.M. Kelley Publrs hardcover [6/80] for $45.00
	"What Veblen Taught: Selected Writings of Thorstein B. Veblen" [1936] Edited by Wesley Claire Mitchell Kessinger Publng 9x6 pb [9/2010] for $30.92 Kessinger Publng 9x6 hardcover [9/2010] for $41.72 A.M. Kelley Publrs hardcover [6/36] out of print/used
	"The Portable Veblen: The Essence of The Work and Thought of One of America's Great Original Minds" [1948] Edited & with Introduction by Max Lerner contains "The Theory of The Leisure Class" in full, selections from "The Place of Science", "Absentee Ownership", "The Instinct of Workmanship", "The Engineers and The Price System", and other works Penguin/Viking 7x5 pb [1976] out of print/used Viking mass pb [1958] out of print/used
	"Thorstein B. Veblen: Essays, Reviews & Reports - Previously Uncollected Writings" [1973] Edited & with essay 'A New Light On Veblen' by Joseph Dorfman A.M. Kelley Publrs 9x6 hardcover [6/73] out of print/used
	"A Veblen Treasury: From Leisure Class To War, Peace & Capitalism" [1993] Edited by Rick Tilman A.M. Kelley Publrs 8½x6 pb [12/93] for $48.40 A.M. Kelley Publrs 9½x6¼xhardcover [12/93] out of print/used

	"Thorstein Veblen and His America" [1934] by Joseph Dorfman A.M.Kelley Publg 9½x6¼ hardcover [2/92] out of print/used
	"Veblen" [1936 classic] by John Atkinson Hobson A.M. Kelley Publg 8¾x5¾ hardcover [9/90 reprint] out of print/used A.M. Kelley Publg hardcover [1971 reprint] out of print/used online text of Hobson's "Work and Wealth: A Human Valuation" [1914]
	"Thorstein Veblen: A Critical Interpretation" [1952] by David Reisman {1994 edition includes a new Introduction by Stjepan G. Mestrovic} Transaction Publg 9x6¼ pb [12/94] for $21.78 Charles Scribner's Sons hardcover [1952] out of print/scarce
	"The Innocents At Cedro: A Memoir - Thorstein Veblen & Some Others" [1972] by Robert L. Duffus A.M.Kelley Publg 8¾x5½ hardcover [1/72] for $33.25
	"Thorstein Veblen" [1977] by Douglas F. Dowd Transaction Publg 9x6 pb [7/2000] for $25.07 Greenwood Publng hardcover [9/77] out of print/used

	"The Bard of Savagery: Thorstein Veblen & Modern Social Theory" [1978] by John Patrick Diggins Continuum hardcover [6/78] out of print/used Seabury Press 8¾x6¼ hardcover [6/78] out of print/used Harvester Press/ [6/78] out of print/used
	"Thorstein Veblen, 1857-1929" biography [1992] Edited by Mark Blaug Edward Elgar Publg 10x7 hardcover [6/92] for $198.00 Mark Blaug [1927-2011] entry at Wikipedia
	"Thorstein Veblen & His Critics, 1891-1963" [1992] by Rick Tilman Princeton Univ Press hardcover [3/92] out of print/used
	"Thorstein Veblen: Critical Assessments" [1993] Edited by John Cunningham Wood Routledge 10x6¾ hardcover [11/2004] 3 volumes for $650.00
	"The Intellectual Legacy of Thorstein Veblen" [1996] by Rick Tilman Greenwood Publg hardcover [9/96] out of print/used
	"An Identification, Analysis & Critique of Thorstein B. Veblen's Philosophy of Higher Education" [1998] by Samuel Schneider Edwin Mellen Press 9½x6½ hardcover [4/98] for $109.95
	"Thorstein Veblen In The XXIst Century: A Commemoration ofThe Theory of the Leisure Class, 1899-1999" [1998] by Doug Brown Edward Elgar Publg hardcover [12/98] for $96.99
	"Dreiser and Veblen: Saboteurs of The Status Quo" [1999] by Clare Virginia Eby Univ MO Press 9½x6¼ hardcover [2/99] for $39.95
	"Thorstein Veblen: Victorian Firebrand" [1999] by Elizabeth & Henry Jorgensen M.E. Sharpe 9¼x6¼ hardcover [4/99] for $43.95
	"Thorstein Veblen: Theorist of The Leisure Class" [1999] by John Patrick Diggins Princeton Univ Press 9x6 pb [5/99] for $23.95 Princeton Univ Press 9½x6½ hardcover [5/99] for $75.00
	"Is Economics An Evolutionary Science?: The Legacy of Thorstein Veblen" [2000] Edited by Francisco Louca & Mark Perlman Edward Elgar Publg hardcover [10/2000] for $101.99
	"Veblen In Perspective: His Life & Thought" [2001] by Stephen Edgell M.E. Sharpe 9x6 pb [5/2001] for $25.95 M.E. Sharpe 9.3x6.3 hardcover [5/2001] for $59.95
	"Veblen's Century: A Collective Portrait" [2001] Edited by Irving Louis Horowitz Essays by C. Wright Mills, Max Lerner, David Reisman, Douglas Dowd & others written for reissues by Transaction Publishing of all Veblen's works Transaction Publg 9x6 pb [12/2002] for $29.95 Transaction Publg hardcover [11/2001] for $49.95
	"Veblen and Modern America: Revolutionary Iconoclast" [2002] by Michael Spindler Pluto Press 8½x5¼ pb [8/2002] for $19.95 Pluto Press 9x5¼ hardcover [8/2002] for $69.95
	"The Legacy of Thorstein Veblen" [2003] Edited by Rick Tilman Edward Elgar Publg hardcover [9/2003] ten volumes for $835.00 [!]
	"An Introduction To Thorstein Veblen's Economic Theory" [2003] by Adil Hasan Mouhammed Edwin Mellen Press 9x6¼ hardcover [9/2003] list price $117.69 - out of print/used
	"Veblen, Dewey and Mills: An Intellectual Relationship" [2003] by Rick Tilman title changed at some point to "Veblen, Dewey, and Mills and The Generic Ends of Life" Rowman & Littlefield 9x6 hardcover [12/2003] out of print/used more details on Maison d'Être Bookstore's educator John Dewey [1859-1952] Page more details on Maison d'Être Bookstore's C. Wright Mills [1916-62] Page
	"Thorstein Veblen and The American Way of Life" [2004] by Louis Patsouras Black Rose 9x6½ pb [5/2004] for $21.64 Black Rose 9x6½ library hardcover [5/2004] for $55.99
	"Veblen In Plain English: A Complete Introduction To Thorstein Veblen's Economics" [2006] by Ken McCormick Cambria Press 9x6 pb [4/2006] for $29.95 Cambria Press 9½x6¼ hardcover [10/2006] for $79.95
	"Thorstein Veblen and The Enrichment of Evolutionary Naturalism" [2007] by Rick Tilman Univ Missouri 9½x6½ hardcover [4/2007] for $42.10
	"Thorstein Veblen and The Revival of Free Market Capitalism" [2007] Edited by Janet T. Knoedler, Robert E. Prasch & Dell P. Champlin The authors have chosen contributors that support the {FALSE!} premise that laissez faire economics is now 'restored' as "the governing principle of contemporary economic ideology and policy-making" — while the Oligarchs are indeed winning the Class War, there is no economy on the planet where laissez faire capitalism is being practiced! Edward Elgar Publng 9¼x6 hardcover [9/2007] for $111.72 {sic}
	"The Political Ideas of Thorstein Veblen" [2011] by Sidney Plotkin & Rick Tilman Kindle Edition from Yale Univ Press [12/2011] for $16.50 Yale Univ Press 9¼x6¼ pb [12/2011] for $27.00
	"The Social Economics of Thorstein Veblen" [2012] by David Reisman Edward Elgar Publng 9¾x6½ hardcover [7/2012] for $142.50 {sic}
	"The Collected Short Works of Thorstein Veblen" in 3 volumes [2014] Volume 1: Vernon Press 9x6 pb [3/2017] for $35.00 Volume 1: Vernon Press 9x6 hardcover [3/2014] for $44.60 Volume 2: Vernon Press 9x6 pb [3/2017] for $35.00 Volume 2: Vernon Press 9x6 hardcover [3/2014] for $28.00 Volume 3: Vernon Press 9x6 pb [3/2017] for $35.00 Volume 3: Vernon Press 9x6 hardcover [3/2014] for $53.69 publisher's bookpage

Maison d'Être Philosophy BookstoreThorstein B. Veblen [1857-1929]

Maison d'Être Philosophy Bookstore
Thorstein B. Veblen
[1857-1929]