Capitalism is defined as an economic system in which the means of production and distribution are privately or corporately owned and development is proportionate to the accumulation and reinvestment of profits gained in a free market. There are five basic characteristics of capitalism: commodities, money, labor power, means of production and production. The first characteristic is commodities. Capitalism has two types of commodities, which are capital and consumer goods. Capital goods are land; raw materials, tools, machines, and these capital goods were used to produce consumer goods. The second aspect of capitalism is money. Money is a standardized means of exchange. Another characteristic is labor power. Labor power is the work that is needed to transform one type of commodity into another. The next aspect of capitalism is means of production. Means of production is another term for capital goods. The last and final characteristic of capitalism is production. Production is the combination of labor power and means of production to produce commodities. .
The slave system in America has influenced human history of today. Slaves were more often used as a sign of affluence, a way of displaying one's wealth and of enjoying luxury, rather than as the means for the systematic accumulation of wealth. Previously, slavery had existed in hierarchical societies in which the slave was at the bottom of a social ladder, the most inferior in a society of unequals. Slavery in America was set apart by three characteristics: capitalism, individualism, and racism. .
There are three main historical developments that have had a profound influence on today's society and the development of the culture of capitalism. These developments are the increase of the division of world wealth, changes in the organization of capital, and the increase in the level of economic globalization. All of these developments are an analysis of how the culture of capitalism functions.
