Death, deeds, and descendants : inheritance in modern America / Remi Clignet.
1992
HQ536 .C55 1992 (Map It)
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Items
Details
Author
Title
Death, deeds, and descendants : inheritance in modern America / Remi Clignet.
Published
New York : Aldine de Gruyter, 1992.
Call Number
HQ536 .C55 1992
ISBN
0202303985
Description
xi, 236 pages ; 24 cm.
System Control No.
(OCoLC)24908399
Bibliography, etc. Note
Includes bibliographical references and index
Record Appears in
Table of Contents
Preface
1
Challenges of a Study of American Inheritance
1
Liberty and Equality in Inheritance: The Views of the French Revolution Model
10
The American Historical Experience of Inheritance
13
Romantic Motives versus Rational Efficiency
15
Property and Inheritance
20
The Outline of the Book
25
2
Inheritance and Reproduction
29
Reproduction: The Historical Background of the Term
30
Inheritance and Reproduction: The Challenge
32
The Conscious or Unconscious Nature of Reproduction
33
The Three Components of Reproduction: What Endures?
35
The Specificity of Reproduction in American Society: The Evidence
41
Determinants of Reproduction
44
The Limits of the Notion of Reproduction
53
Summary and Conclusions
57
3
The Burden of Proof in the Study of Heirship
59
The Representativeness of Samples
60
The Choice of a Sample of Estate Tax Returns
63
The Overall Demographic and Socioeconomic Profile of the Sample
71
The Validity of the Data
75
Conclusions
79
4
On the Variety of American Wealth
81
The Relevance of the Theory of Segmented Labor Markets
81
On Patterns of Capital Formation
83
On the Distinct Forms of American Wealth
90
The Variability in the Composition of Estates in 1920 and 1944
99
The Composition of the Estate: An Overall Picture
102
The Diversity of the Composition of Estates
104
Conclusions
119
The Materialist Logic of Wealth Accumulation
119
5
Testacy and the Limits of Free Wills
123
Death and Time
124
What Is Known about Testacy in the United States
126
The Role of Testacy in 1920 and 1944
133
Joint Property
134
The Role of Gifts Inter Vivos
135
The Incidence of Wills
137
Time Interval between Testacy and Death
140
The Incidence of Trusts
142
Testacy and the Control of Time
143
Instruments of Transfers as Instruments of Ordering Things and People
144
Conclusions
153
6
Bequests and Inequality between and within Families
155
The Testators' Dilemmas
156
The Evidence
165
Determinants of Inequality
169
An Assessment of Inequalities among the 1920 and 1944 Decedents
170
The Variety of Forms of Inequality
177
Conclusions
186
7
Inheritance of Yesterday, Inheritance of Today
189
Inheritance and Reproduction: The Overall View
191
Mechanical and Interpretive Forms of Inheritance
193
The Relativity of the Results
203
Policy Implications
206
Notes
209
References
221
Index
232