The limits of the markets[Les limites du marché]

How can we place limits on the market, when it is being extended into areas that had hitherto evaded it, such as the body and nature? This question lies at the core of Commodification Studies, an area of research which concerns the ethical, moral and social problems posed by particular markets (surrogacy, organs, environmental services, etc.). Is it possible to escape some forms of commodification, while technical advances have enabled new "objects" to circulate? On what basis can we keep any given space, or thing, outside the scope of individual property or the field of private exchange? Commodification is contested in the sense that the extension of the market into new fields is contested; yet so is the very act of describing any particular development in terms of commodification: thus the concept, which is an essentially critical one, is itself contested. In this volume, philosophers, lawyers and economists take up these topics, questioning the relevance of the arguments proffered and the answers produced: they analyse the way in which political choices shape the apprehension of new objects and thus frame the terms of the debate, and they review possible alternatives, whether already at work or simply under consideration. This book is the first in France to bring together contributions to the field of Commodification Studies from a wide range of countries and disciplines, seeking thereby to extend and renew the work being done under this heading.