近年美國學界興起一股新資本主義史的潮流，相關研究大量出版，有學者以此題目推出線上課程，並舉辦暑期研習班，訓練學生研究相關題材，更有打著資本主義旗號的期刊問世。新資本主義史發起人指出這史學趨勢的特點是不將資本主義視作一成不變的經濟體系，藉此強調人在其中的主體性。有歷史學者便主張以經濟生活史來形容將非經濟因素包括在內來解釋經濟現象的研究，以區別用實證方法解釋經濟自身運作的經濟史。另一考察這趨勢的途徑是此類學者對資本主義的立場，及其研究所引起的迴響。他們大多對資本主義持批判態度，但批判程度和切入點不一，故本文標題稱之為多元的批判。雖然歷史學者都有借古論今的傾向，但這做法在新資本主義史特別明顯，與其研究題材和方法的多樣相關。作者選取新資本主義史中三個較重要的題材，即奴隸制、金融和新自由主義，說明歷史學者如何推陳出新，藉批判帶出改良訊息。

The study of capitalism has been gaining traction in the history profession in the United States in recent years, with book after book published on the topic. One scholar launched an online course and organized summer seminars to train students to conduct related research. Others founded a new journal with the word capitalism in its title. A proponent of this historiographical trend suggests that its main features are the perspective on capitalism as a mutable economic system and the stress on the agency of human actors within it. Some historians term the research that explains economic phenomena by considering noneconomic factors as the history of economic life, distinguishing it from economic history that explains the economy through positivist methods. Another channel to survey this trend is by probing scholars’ position on capitalism and the responses to their research. The title of this article refers to the observation that most of these scholars hold a critical stance towards capitalism, but their extents and entry points vary, therefore constituting a diverse critique. Although historians are inclined to comment on the present by studying the past, this practice is especially prominent in this trend, benefitting from the variety of its research topics and methods. The author discusses three important topics related to the new history of capitalism, namely slavery, finance, and neoliberalism, to illustrate how historians can breathe life into old issues and bring forth a reformist message through critique.

資本主義;經濟生活;奴隸制;金融;新自由主義

capitalism; economic life; slavery; finance; neoliberalism