Short answers, pulled from the story.
The initial use of the term capitalism in its modern sense is attributed to Louis Blanc in 1850, who defined it as the appropriation of capital by some to the exclusion of others. Pierre-Joseph Proudhon followed in 1861. In English, the word first appears in 1854 in William Makepeace Thackeray's novel The Newcomes.
Capitalism is an economic system based on private ownership of the means of production and its use to obtain profit. Its constituent elements include private property, the profit motive, capital accumulation, competitive markets, commodification, wage labor, and an emphasis on innovation and economic growth.
Modern capitalism emerged from agrarianism in England and from mercantilist practices in European countries between the 16th and 18th centuries. The Industrial Revolution of the 18th century established it as a dominant mode of production characterized by factory work and a complex division of labor.
Harvard Kennedy School economist Dani Rodrik distinguishes three variants. Capitalism 1.0 during the 19th century left markets largely unregulated with a minimal state. Capitalism 2.0 during the post-World War II years brought Keynesianism, market regulation, and strong welfare states. Capitalism 2.1 combined unregulated markets, globalization, and national obligations by states.
The relationship is contested. Friedrich Hayek argued in The Road to Serfdom in 1944 that capitalism's economic freedom is a requisite of political freedom, while Thomas Piketty argued in 2013 that the inequality it produces can destabilize democracy. States with capitalist economies, including Singapore and the People's Republic of China, have also thrived under authoritarian governments.
Variants include advanced capitalism, corporate capitalism, finance capitalism, free-market capitalism, mercantilism, state capitalism, and welfare capitalism. Theoretical variants include anarcho-capitalism, neo-capitalism, state monopoly capitalism, and technocapitalism. All share private ownership of the means of production, market-based allocation of resources, and the accumulation of capital.