The Domestication of Competition

Jonathan Hearn is Professor of Political and Historical Sociology at the University of Edinburgh and President of the Association for the Study of Ethnicity and Nationalism. His published writings explore themes of social power, nationalism and identity, Scotland and its Enlightenment, liberal and civil society, and competition.

'Only a scholar from social anthropology could have written this book! It locates and analyses the cultural code on which our societies depend, that of competition. It does so with skill and nuance, stressing the role played by regulation and law in ensuring social progress. This is a wholly original, path-breaking book, challenging assumptions about competition found on both the left and the right, and likely to cause a stir in many disciplines.' John Hall, McGill University

• Introduction; Part I. The Ideas: 1. The context of the question; 2. The theoretical approach; Part II. The Analytic Narrative: 3. The decline of traditional authority, and the rise of corporate actors; 4. Militias to militaries; 5. From adventurers to companies; 6. From factions to parties; 7. From churches to universities; Part III. The Wider View: 8. The culture of competition; 9. The critique of competition; Conclusion; References.