InThe Man in the White Suit, Alec Guinness plays a mild mannered industrial scientist who discovers a seemingly indestructible fiber. Who could doubt what a boon that would be to society? His employer, a venerable, run-down British textile company, wants to suppress his invention. His coworkers are terrified by it. His friends turn against him. His personal safety becomes endangered, and comic chases ensue. All is well in the end – when the fiber turns out not to work.

Entrepreneurs seek profits by introducing new goods, services, organizations, and techniques. In doing so, they advance the economic welfare of society. At the same time, their activities are profoundly disturbing. Entrepreneurs are, after all, the agents of “creative destruction,” as Joseph Schumpeter so aptly labeled the processes of change they set in motion; their successes invariably upset existing social arrangements, transferring wealth and power from old to new sectors of the economy. It is for that reason, throughout most of history, that expansive empires and local tribal cultures alike have tried to curb entrepreneurial behavior with political restraints and social taboos, lest it upset the status quo. Modern capitalist societies depend utterly on entrepreneurship for their progress; but they too remain ambivalent about its effects. In the United States, where the individualistic pursuit of happiness flourishes as in no other country, commercial invention and innovation have become the norm, encouraged by public policy and reinforced by cultural values that support progress, change, and social mobility.