American Capitalism in Historical Perspective : With Special Reference to the Stage of "Cold War"

Abstract

It has been generally observed with justice that as compared with British capitalism, "the fatherland of free competition", formed American capitalism along with German "a homeland of centralization and monopoly", in other words, a model land of imperialism. In view of the post-war stage of the world history, however, where capitalist America has become, as it were, a controlling centre of all the capitalist world, is not it demanded especially now for us to introduce a new line setting America against Germany, or broadly speaking, "new world" America against "old world" Europe, besides that old demarcation which discriminated America with together Germany from Britain? Furthermore, does not above question involve significant issue which should be inquired into radically as a problem, in general, of the place of American capitalism in history, since in this distinction between American and German capitalism there involved that structural and historical contrast or confrontation which suggested already in Lenin's famous "two courses" theory on the capitalistic growth, and which drew its historical conclusions in the course of that struggle for world-wide imperialistic domination - Fascism vs. New Deal ? It is the main purpose of this paper to answer these questions focussing attention on her post-war economic structure, especially on its basic manufacturing structure.