India, April 3 -- We may not think of it as such, but most of us grew up with a fairytale about capitalism: study, work hard, make the right choices, and life will get so much better.

That story matters more than any textbook definitions.

Capitalism does not need to appear equitable or just; it needs to feel open. People need to feel their future is not fixed.

For a long time, that belief held, in the US, in India, in places like China where the alternatives felt worse.

For a long time, the promise held. Millions with dreams of more moved from villages to cities. New jobs appeared in new industries. Families began to buy refrigerators, cars, air-conditioners, vacations, educations abroad; then second cars and second homes. Not everyon...