New World of Gain

Brian P. Owensby is Professor of History and Director of the Center for Global Inquiry and Innovation at the University of Virginia.

• Introduction: Directions1. Coming to the Encounter2. Of Gain and Gift3. Limits of Law, Love, and Conscience4. Beyond Predation5. The Guaraní Mission World6. Good Economy of the State7. From Community to Liberty8. The Only Example in the History of the UniverseConclusion: Reflections

"Well written and theoretically informed, New World of Gain depicts the long encounter between the Guaraní of Paraguay and invading Europeans. Themes of rapacity, profit, inequality, and religious conversion mixed with violence weave through this historical narrative that illuminates both sides of the confrontation."—Steve Gudeman, University of Minnesota "New World of Gain offers a powerful new vision of Guaraní and Jesuits forging reciprocities in search of 'a land without evil.' A revealing look at intersections of lived history and constructed memory."—John Tutino, Georgetown University "In beautiful prose, New World of Gain builds a compelling narrative of the Guaraní mission world that will interest scholars and students of the colonial Río de la Plata but equally entice a much broader audience, including Europeanists, economic historians, and proponents of the global turn. This book promises to spark debate and dialogue for many years to come."—Shawn Michael Austin, Hispanic American Historical Review "Readers will find this book a fresh, original narrative about Spanish colonialism in Paraguay, drawing from multiple strains of historiography, Paraguayan as well as US, economic as well as anthropological.... Owensby invites us to think about how contemporary tensions and debates between individual profit and the common good are not recent but claim a much longer history, which has been shaped not only by the hands of trained scholars but also by the everyday lives of indigenous peoples."—Alfredo Escudero Villanueva, H-LatAm "Through his exploration of the Paraguayan missions, Owensby makes the case that European notions of economic gain were not inevitable and that societies could be organized in better ways to bring aboutgreater well-being. This book is important not only for its erudition about the Paraguayan missions but also for its understanding of the European colonial enterprise and economic thought in general."—Erick D. Langer, Journal of Interdisciplinary History