The Property Species: Mine, Yours, and the Human Mind
Oxford University Press, 2020
What is property, and why does our species have it? In The Property Species, I explore how humans acquire, perceive, and know the custom of property, and why this might be relevant to understanding how property works in the twenty-first century.
Arguing that neither the sciences nor the humanities synthesizes a full account of property, the book offers a cross-disciplinary compromise that is sure to be controversial: Property is a universal and uniquely human custom. Integrating cognitive linguistics with philosophy of property and a fresh look at property disputes in the common law, the book makes the case that symbolic-thinking humans locate the meaning of property within a thing. That is, all human beings and only human beings have property in things, and at its core, property rests on custom, not rights. Such an alternative to conventional thinking contends that the origins of property lie not in food, mates, territory, or land, but in the very human act of creating, with symbolic thought, something new that did not previously exist.
Written by an economist who marvels at the natural history of humankind, the book is essential reading for experts and any reader who has wondered why people claim things as “Mine!”, and what that means for our humanity.
Endorsements
“This book is a tour de force and will surely be a landmark in thought. The way Wilson weaves together law and economics, psychology and history, experiment and theory, to make a fresh argument about a very old subject is remarkable. It’s a worthy successor to Locke.”
— Matt Ridley, author of The Evolution of Everything
“Bart Wilson explores how human customs differentiate between ‘mine’ and ‘thine.’ Through this lens, The Property Species will hone the way economists, lawyers, and philosophers understand human action in all social and political contexts, past and present.”
— Terry L. Anderson, Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution
Reviews
TrueLife Podcast
— George Monty
Public Choice
— Jon Murphy
Journal of Consumer Culture
— Russell Belk
The Objective Standard
— Timothy Sandefur
Related Articles
Keeping the Peace: Property and Community
— OUPblog
September 25, 2021
Respecting Property Takes Two
— OUPblog
April 16, 2021
Why Do Humans Have Property?
— OUPblog
October 10, 2020
Podcast and Radio Interviews
This is Mine
— Bound by Oath with John Ross
April 26, 2024 (Apple , website)
The Property Species
— Ideas Having Sex with Chris Kaufman
April 11, 2022 (Apple)
Navigating the Symbolic Pathway to Property
— True Life with George Monty
February 21, 2022 (Apple, website)
What is Property?
— Minddog TV with Matt Nappo
December 30, 2021 (Apple, website)
WHBK Chicago, IL
— The Grok Science Show with Charles Lee
December 29, 2021 (website)
KOA Denver, CO
— Ross Kaminsky
December 15, 2021
WGVU Grand Rapids, MI
— Shelley Irwin
November 3, 2021
WIIC Bridgeport, CT
— Paul Paccelli
October 15, 2021
The Foundations of Property
— The Bob Zadek Show
May 16, 2021 (Apple, website)
The Property Species
— The Dissenter with Ricardo Lopes
May 7, 2021 (Youtube)
Book Forum on The Property Species
— with Kent Lassman, President, Competitive Enterprise Institute
February 11, 2021 (CEI, Youtube)
Property and Humanity
— Ideas in Progress with Anthony Comegna
December 16, 2020 (Apple, Spotify, Soundcloud)
Property and Liberalism
— Ideas in Progress with Anthony Comegna
December 9, 2020 (Apple, Spotify, Soundcloud)
The Property Species
— Free Thoughts with Aaron Ross Powell and Trevor Burrus
November 27, 2020 (Apple, Google, Spotify, mp3)
Book Review: The Property Species: Mine, Yours, and the Human Mind
— The Federalist Society with Timothy Sandefur
November 17, 2020 (Apple, Google, mp3)
Is the Idea of Property Universal?
— The Curious Task with Alex Aragona
October 21, 2020 (Apple, Spotify, Podbean)
The Meaning of Property in Things
— The Governance Podcast with Irena Schneider
October 15, 2018 (Apple, Spotify, Podbean)