What is Property? An Inquiry into the Principle of Right and of Government

Name: What is Property? An Inquiry into the Principle of Right and of Government
Author: P.-J. Proudhon

By P.-J. Proudhon

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Philosophy & Ethics Politics

About This Book

The author mounts a systematic critique of property, defining it as the proprietor's claimed right of increase and examining occupation, labor, and civil law as purported foundations. He argues that labor cannot legitimately appropriate natural wealth and advances a series of propositions contending that property is logically and socially impossible because it demands something for nothing, generates inequality, economic inefficiency, accumulation contradictions, tyranny, and social violence. The work adds a psychological analysis of justice and sociability, contrasts communism and private ownership, and outlines principles for government and a third social form intended to remedy the moral and political effects attributed to property.

About the Author

P.-J. Proudhon

Pierre-Joseph Proudhon was a French politician and philosopher, best known for his pioneering ideas in political economy and social theory. He is often regarded as one of the founders of anarchism and is notable for his critical examination of property and capitalism. In his influential work "What is Property? An Inquiry into the Principle of Right and of Government," Proudhon famously declared that "property is theft," challenging conventional notions of ownership and advocating for a more equitable society. His writings, including "System of Economical Contradictions; Or, The Philosophy of Misery," explore the contradictions inherent in economic systems and continue to resonate in contemporary discussions of social justice and economic theory.