Free Gifts: Capitalism and the Politics of Nature

The problem at the root of capitalism’s relationship with nature isn’t exploitation per se, but that nature is treated as “free,” writes political scientist Battistoni (A Planet to Win) in this stimulating treatise. The author traces the capitalist view of nature as a “free gift”—as opposed to a commodity that can be exchanged—from the late 18th and early 19th centuries, focusing on Adam Smith’s and Karl Marx’s ideas about what distinguishes human labor from natural resources. Elsewhere, Battistoni links this theoretical framework not just to resource extraction but the “externalization” of damage done to nature (with pollution considered “surplus matter” of the production process) and even why the “natural” work of reproductive labor goes uncompensated. Battistoni is a rigorous and skilled polemicist; she showcases her original close readings of classic texts without veering too far into the weeds. Her investigation adds up to a fascinating look at how a “free” nature functions, ironically, to restrict human freedom to make ethical and socially responsible decisions: “By compelling us to treat nature as a free gift, capitalism limits our ability to act on our judgements about... how we ought to value other kinds of beings, and how we might live differently as a result.” It adds up to an insightful theoretical approach to the climate crisis. (Aug.)