The Silent Revolution: A New Perspective on the Emergence of Commons, Guilds, and Other Forms of Corporate Collective Action in Western Europe

A new approach to guilds as institutions has been presented in this article. Although it cannot be denied that there is a clear need for a more global +Italic horizontal -Italic comparison of guilds in order to understand fully the functioning and role of such institutions, the debate would also benefit from a more vertical comparison, a comparison of the structure of the institution, with other forms of corporate collective action also being considered. But that would entail some risks. A theoretical approach as demonstrated in this article brings with it not only the possibility of too much generalization, it also restricts space for true empiricism. However, I hope the advantages of this new approach have been made sufficiently clear here.