The political economy of love

Abstract

In this critical article three findings are shown: first: although love is a moral value, an expression of empathy and altruism, its performance and supply are bounded because the problem of scarcity (material and institutional limitations); second: love is a form of power (integrative power), which is frequently combined with others powers (of exchange and coercion); third: in the extremes of pure public goods and of privatization (monopolies, positional goods, and clubs) the love dries up.