Please read the attached file.

Assignment 4: Final Written Assignment

Due: After you have completed units 1 through 10 and all other course assignments

Weighting: 40% of final grade

Length: Approximately 3500-4000 words (about 15-17 pages)

Instructions: Select one (1) of the following questions and prepare an essay response to it. Your essay should incorporate the work examined in units through 10.

1. Compare and contrast the Ancient and Mercantilist ideas of Aristotle and Khaldun with their Classical counterparts (e.g., Smith, Ricardo, Malthus, and Marx; Units 3 and 4). With whom do Aristotle and Khaldun most clearly share intellectual affinities and with whom do they differ most sharply? In what ways are the theoretical presuppositions of Aristotle and Khaldun important for contemporary political economy?

2. As noted in Unit 8, income inequality has reached new heights in Canada and the United States. What would the Marginalist (Unit 5) and neoliberal political economists have to say about this? How would the views of Marx (Unit 4), the economic sociologists (Unit 6), Veblen and Keynes (Unit 7), or Intersectional Approaches (Unit 9) differ? (Feel free to choose one or more). How has paid-employment been impacted, and why is income polarization unhealthy for Canadian society?

3. In their book, In and Out of Crisis: The Global Financial Meltdown and Left Alternatives, Albo et al. (2010, p. 114) argue that the time has come to move away from discussions about alternative policies and toward discussions of an alternative politics. What do they mean by this, and are their arguments convincing? Do the authors examined in Unit 10 (“The Revival of Critical Political Economy and the Future of Capitalism”) find the future of capitalism compelling? Why or why not? In your view, does the future of capitalism appear promising? Why or why not?