# The Origin of Capitalism by Ellen Meiksins Wood

3 Hacker News commenters recommended The Origin of Capitalism by Ellen Meiksins Wood and 0 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 3 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** Recommended for its account of how England and France moved from agrarian feudal mercantilism into capitalism. No critics appear in the quotes, so no caveat is recorded.

## Why people recommend it

- Clear account of England and France transition (1 comments): "Highly recommend this book on the transition in England and France from agrarian and feudal mercantilism into capitalism" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46017497))
- Cited as intelligent counterargument (1 comments): "a much more cited and intelligent opposition to what you're proposing" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48202390))
- Essential reading on the topic (1 comments): "you need to read Meiksins Wood's 'The Origin of Capitalism'" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47738717))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [Debt by David Graeber](https://hackerapproved.com/p/debt-the-first-5-000-years.md): 19 recommend
- [The Great Transformation by Karl Polanyi](https://hackerapproved.com/p/great-transformation.md): 3 recommend
- [The Rise and Fall of American Growth by Robert Gordon](https://hackerapproved.com/p/rise-and-fall-of-american-growth.md): 2 recommend
- [The Almighty Dollar by Brendan Greeley](https://hackerapproved.com/p/almighty-dollar.md): 2 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/1859843921?tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/a/130825/9781859843925) (affiliate link)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "The Origin of Capitalism by Ellen Meiksins Wood", https://hackerapproved.com/p/origin-of-capitalism/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).