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The following is a book review of “Equality: The History of an Elusive Idea,” by Darrin M. McMahon, published by Basic Books. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. Thomas Jefferson wrote these memorable words in 1776. Meanwhile, over the course of his lifetime, he owned some 600 human beings, buying and selling them as needed,

When economist Angus Deaton moved to the United States in 1983, he was “in awe,” as he puts it in his new book, “Economics in America.” Born in Scotland and educated at the University of Cambridge, he remembers the swell of optimism he felt upon arriving at Princeton University. It was a “splendid place to work,” especially for someone who had been poor enough as a child to appreciate the measure of security provided by an “American salary.” But Deaton was immediately struck by the dark side of