Master Class on Income Inequality

The class set out to ask profound questions about capitalism. What role does money play in human motivation? How much wealth is too much wealth? Should all incomes be equal? We’ll also take a look under capitalism’s hood and examine the markets that keep it going. Are they a good thing? Do they work? When they don’t work, how can they be tempered and controlled? Discussions were informed by readings from John Stuart Mill, John Rawls, Robert Nozick, John Kenneth Galbraith, among others.

Mr. Davies reports, “Eliot Spitzer remains an acute public policy analyst, able to reach across many disciplines to consider questions of social and economic equity. He continues, as well, to be a keen analyst of current politics. Putting him together with a great group of teacher from both public and independent schools made for a fascinating day.”

The insights gained through the master class will support the Hackley History department’s work, including future conversations in Hackley’s Economics and 20th Century World history courses. Questions of income, wealth and tax policy are clearly linked to economics studies, and issues of class, wealth (and poverty) are always present in history, challenging students to consider structural and moral questions arising from the historical contexts they study.