The Rise and Fall of American Growth

Description

Robert J. Gordon traces American economic growth and living standards from the Civil War era to the present. He first examines changes in living standards before World War II, then follows the remainder of the exceptional century and the period that came afterward. Gordon identifies the century after 1870 as an extraordinary era of prosperity, followed by stagnation after 1970. His account connects that slowdown with rising inequality and less secure work, arguing that subsequent growth represents only a diminished remnant of the transformative economic expansion that occurred between 1920 and 1970.

Themes