Capitalism - A system of economics that emphasizes private ownership of property and business and freedom from government regulation; society's capital (land, business, etc.) is owned by a minority, using it for their benefit (Sreenivasan 76).

In Looking Backward, Bellamy imagines the year 2000 to be driven on public capital, meaning the nation, instead of a select-few minorities, owns itself. The government distributes all the capital evenly among its citizens every year onto a credit card; whatever money is left over by the end of the year is then returned to the government for re-disbursement. Because of this new way of managing money, the only thing driving citizens to work is simply honor. Lastly, social and economic classes cease to exist in this Utopia.