I usually hear feudalism come up in debates between capitalists and socialists and it seems to be treated not just by them but by most people as a monolithic economic system which we began to move beyond some time in the early modern period (Maybe I'm wrong there). However, just as capitalism in the modern world varies in how it functions between nations, I would assume feudalism did in the same way. Whilst I've not looked into this quesiton much (hence this post) I've always had a sense of doubt surrounding how people talk about pre-capitalist economies.
With that nuance in mind, what actually is feudalism and how did it manifest in the world? Maybe this question requires a massive answer so I'd be happy to have some sort of 'history of feudalism' book/work suggested that gives an accurate account.
what actually is feudalism
Um. Uh.
Here's the slight problem - even the actual historians are asking this same question. And even among our flairs, we have a lot of positions on the spectrum from "there's no such thing as feudalism" to "okay yeah but it's still a useful term for the period, kind of", among others.
I commend to your attention the appropriate section of the FAQ, which goes into the debate about the F-word. And as always, if anyone would like to address themselves to the question, more answers are always welcome!