Louis Patsouras unravels the riddled reputation of Thorstein Veblen and analyzes his varied and important contributions to modern social theory. Thorstein Veblen (1857-1929) was an unrelenting critic of the American way of life. In his first and best-known work, The Theory of the Leisure Class, Veblen defined the social attitudes and values that condoned the misuse of wealth and the variety of ways in which the resources of modern society were wasted. Though most famous for the term "conspicuous consumption"--a pattern of consumerism that more than survives to the present day--he also attacked other American institutions and traditions, but his ideas on society were often dismissed because of his reputation as an eccentric. Although unsuccessful in his university career, in his two marriages, and in his private life, in his books Veblen shone. Thorstein Veblen remains a baffling figure in American intellectual history, and this important work, undertaken by Louis Patsouras, attempts both to unravel the riddles that surround his reputation and to assess his varied and important contributions to modern social theory. By setting Veblen's work in its social and intellectual context, and by considering Veblen not just as an economist or a sociologist--as has been the case up to now--Patsouras also examines Veblen's politics, in particular the early manifestations of American socialism and anarchism, as well as his support of labor unions. Veblen's views are then compared and contrasted with other well-known historical and contemporary thinkers.

In this process, Patsouras makes clear just how vital Veblen was and remains to our cultural and political landscape and why it is that through an understanding of Veblen we can move toward an understanding of modern America. LOUIS PATSOURAS is Professor of History at Kent State University. His other published works include Simone Weil and the Socialist Tradition, The Crucible of Socialism, Debating Marx, Essays on Socialism, Continuity and Change in Marxism and The Anarchism of Jean Grave.