This book provides an original reconstruction of the history of economic thought, from its prehistory (the Bible, Classical antiquity) to the present day. Chapters on the main figures (William Petty, Adam Smith, David Ricardo, Karl Marx, William Stanley Jevons, Carl Menger, Léon Walras, Alfred Marshall, John Maynard Keynes, Joseph Schumpeter, Piero Sraffa) alternate with chapters on other important figures and on the debates of the period. A mass of references to primary and secondary sources, with brief illustration of different interpretations, is provided. Economic thought is seen as developing between two opposite poles: a subjective one, based on the ideas of scarcity and utility, and an objective one based on the notions of physical costs and the surplus. However, this is but a simple infrastructure for a much more complex story, in which the vision and the meaning of the concepts change over time in connection with the analytical debate and with the general cultural climate. The history of economic thought is thus seen as a most important tool for an understanding and a critical evaluation of the foundations of economic theories. In this latter respect, the book constitutes an original contribution, by critically evaluating the foundations of the scarcity-utility approach in comparison with the Classical/Keynesian approach.

The Wealth of Ideas / Roncaglia, Alessandro. - (2005).

The Wealth of Ideas

RONCAGLIA, Alessandro
2005

Abstract

This book provides an original reconstruction of the history of economic thought, from its prehistory (the Bible, Classical antiquity) to the present day. Chapters on the main figures (William Petty, Adam Smith, David Ricardo, Karl Marx, William Stanley Jevons, Carl Menger, Léon Walras, Alfred Marshall, John Maynard Keynes, Joseph Schumpeter, Piero Sraffa) alternate with chapters on other important figures and on the debates of the period. A mass of references to primary and secondary sources, with brief illustration of different interpretations, is provided. Economic thought is seen as developing between two opposite poles: a subjective one, based on the ideas of scarcity and utility, and an objective one based on the notions of physical costs and the surplus. However, this is but a simple infrastructure for a much more complex story, in which the vision and the meaning of the concepts change over time in connection with the analytical debate and with the general cultural climate. The history of economic thought is thus seen as a most important tool for an understanding and a critical evaluation of the foundations of economic theories. In this latter respect, the book constitutes an original contribution, by critically evaluating the foundations of the scarcity-utility approach in comparison with the Classical/Keynesian approach.
2005
9780521843379
history of economic thought
03 Monografia::03a Saggio, Trattato Scientifico
The Wealth of Ideas / Roncaglia, Alessandro. - (2005).
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11573/180309
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