This volume revisits Karl Polanyi's analysis of the institutional separation of politics and the economy in the context of the nineteenth century market society to argue that the market economy is not a spontaneous process, but a "political project" realized through institutional changes whereby labor, land, money, and currently knowledge appear as commodities. The contributions explore the political dynamics of this commodification process, its implications for human life and livelihood, and the possibilities for the advent of a more viable order where the economy would be replaced under social control. With its interdisciplinary reach, the book is of interest to academics and graduate students in different fields such as economic sociology, political economy and social policy.

This text presents a comparative historical overview of female employment patterns across the Mediterranean region, analyzing how the relationship between economic development, political change and the cultural environment shapes the evolution of gender roles in interconnected spheres of social life.

Using Karl Polanyi's analysis of the separation of politics and the economy, the book argues that the market economy is not a spontaneous process, but a 'political project' realized through institutional change where labour, land, money, and currently knowledge are commodities. The contributions explore the impact of this commodification process.