The book analyses the theories of bourgeois society by Hegel, Marx and Honneth. Two things become apparent. On the one hand, Hegel's project of integrating the atomistic market economy into his theory of ethical life proves to be unconvincing. This also applies to Axel Honneth's attempt to actualise Hegel's idea of an intrinsic morality of the market. On the other hand, Hegel's approach is helpful for discussing fundamental normative questions: What reasons speak against capitalism? And what forms of sociality characterise the economy of a free community?