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Alexander Needles

Dr. Jones

HIS 1101

09 December 2021

Reflecting on History
Capitalism has had a profound impact on states and civilizations today. It has been the

major driving factor for wealth and innovation. Many economies today are capitalist, especially

in the western hemisphere and North America.

While there are only accounts of the development of capitalism since the 16th century,

“antecedents of capitalist institutions existed in the ancient world, and flourishing pockets of

capitalism were present in Europe during the later Middle Ages.” (britannica.com). The

development of capitalism was accelerated due to the growth of the English cloth industry in the

16th-18th centuries. Eventually, capitalism ended developing into the system that we know today

and that is present all over the world.

The impact of capitalism on the modern world is huge. As previously stated, “Capitalism,

undoubtedly, is a major drive of innovation, wealth, and prosperity in the modern era.”

(investopedia.com). Capitalism incentives businesses to be as efficient as possible, which

promotes growth and allows consumers to have lower prices on different goods. However, there

are some drawbacks to capitalism. “As an economic system, one of the effects of capitalism is

that it breeds competition between countries and perpetuates poverty among developing nations

due to the individual interests of private corporations rather than the needs of their workers.”

(borgenmagazine.com). Due to this, organizations prioritize maintaining wealth, which means

only people who have employment with them or those who are already wealthy. This leads to
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higher rates of poverty and joblessness in nations. Big corporations also exploit poorer nations

by moving their facilities and factories to countries, where there are different regulations.

However, while capitalism has harmed impoverished nations, there have been changes over the

past few decades to facilitate economic growth and stability.

In conclusion, capitalism has had many effects on the world and nations, both positive

and negative. While it has brought lots of innovation and wealth to nations, it also has negatively

impacted poorer nations. However, over the past few decades, there have been efforts to fix this.

Works Cited

Hayes, Adam. “What Are the Most Important Aspects of a Capitalist System?”
Investopedia, Investopedia, 1 June 2021,
https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/040715/what-are-most-important-aspects-
capitalist-system.asp.

“The Effects of Capitalism on Impoverished Nations.” BORGEN, 4 Mar. 2021,

https://www.borgenmagazine.com/the-effects-of-capitalism/.

“Capitalism.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.,

https://www.britannica.com/topic/capitalism.