Evolution of Economic Thought / Edition 8

by Stanley Brue

Overview

The Evolution of Economic Thought, 6/e presents the history of economics and the philosophies that drive the economic way of thinking. It stresses the importance of understanding contemporary economics, by grasping new ideas, evidence, problems and values that call for reconsideration of basic disputes and major contributions of the past. The textbook explains the ideas of the great economic thinkers and their logical connections to the world of today and tomorrow. Updated pedagogial features provide clear insight into issues like antitrust perspectives and game theory. Introducing ideas like Robert Solow's pioneering model to discuss recent renewed emphasis on growth theory and technological change, the author sheds historical light on modern debates and thoughts. Stanley Brue once again carries on the legacy of Jacob Oser, the book's creator, by offering a scholarly and timely presentation of the history of economic thought.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	2901111823688
Publisher:	Cengage Learning
Publication date:	05/30/2012
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	600
Product dimensions:	7.30(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Stanley L. Brue did his undergraduate work at Augustana College (S.D.) and received its Distinguished Achievement Award in 1991. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Nebraska Lincoln. He is a professor at Pacific Lutheran University where he has been honored as a recipient of the Burlington Northern Faculty Achievement Award. Professor Brue has also received the national Leavey Award for excellence in economic education. He has served as national president and chair of the Board of Trustees of Omicron Delta Epsilon International Economics Honorary. For relaxation, he enjoys international travel, attending sporting events, and skiing with family and friends.

Table of Contents

	Preface	vii
1	Introduction and Overview	2
	A Time Scale of Economic Ideas	3
	The Five Major Questions	5
	The Value of Studying Economics and Its History	9
Appendix	History of Economic Thought: Information Sources	12
2	The Mercantilist School	16
	Overview of Mercantilism	17
Past as Prologue 2-1	Mercantilism and the Supply of Labor	21
	Thomas Mun	24
Past as Prologue 2-2	Lingering Mercantilism	25
	Gerard Malynes	27
	Charles Davenant	28
	Jean Baptiste Colbert	29
	Sir William Petty	31
3	The Physiocratic School	36
	Overview of the Physiocrats	37
	Francois Quesnay	41
Past as Prologue 3-1	Quesnay and the Circular Flow Diagram	45
	Anne Robert Jacques Turgot	46
4	The Classical School--Forerunners	50
	Overview of the Classical School	51
	Sir Dudley North	56
	Richard Cantillon	58
	David Hume	61
Past as Prologue 4-1	Hume and Cooperation	65
5	The Classical School--Adam Smith	68
	Biographical Details	69
	Important Influences	70
	The Theory of Moral Sentiments	71
	Wealth of Nations	74
	The Economic Laws of a Competitive Economy	80
Past as Prologue 5-1	Adam Smith and Efficiency Wages	85
6	The Classical School--Thomas Malthus	94
	Historical and Intellectual Setting	95
	Malthus's Population Theory	98
Past as Prologue 6-1	Malthus and Modern-Day Famine	102
	The Theory of Market Gluts	103
	Assessment of Malthus's Contributions	105
7	The Classical School - David Ricardo	110
	Biographical Details	111
	The Currency Question	113
	The Theory of Diminishing Returns and Rent	114
	The Theory of Exchange Value and Relative Prices	118
	The Distribution of Income	121
Past as Prologue 7-1	The Ricardian Equivalence Theorem	122
	Policy Implications	126
	Ricardo on Unemployment	129
	Assessment	130
8	The Classical School - Bentham, Say, Senior, and Mill	134
	Jeremy Bentham	135
Past as Prologue 8-1	Aquinas, Bentham, and Fisher on Usury	140
	Jean-Baptiste Say	142
Past as Prologue 8-2	Say and Rent Seeking	144
	Nassau William Senior	145
	John Stuart Mill	149
Past as Prologue 8-3	Mill, Taylor, and the Rights of Women	151
9	The Rise of Socialist Thought	162
	Overview of Socialism	163
	Henri Comte de Saint-Simon	170
	Charles Fourier	172
	Simonde de Sismondi	174
	Robert Owen	176
	Louis Blanc	180
	Charles Kingsley	182
10	Marxian Socialism	186
	Biographical Details and Intellectual Influences	187
	Marx's Theory of History	189
	The "Law of Motion" of Capitalist Society	191
	The Law of Motion of Capitalism: A Summary	201
	Assessment of Marx's Economics	203
Past as Prologue 10-1	The Collapse of Marxism	207
11	The German Historical School	210
	Overview of the German Historical School	211
	Friedrich List	215
Past as Prologue 11-1	List and Strategic Trade Theory	218
	Wilhelm Roscher	219
	Gustav Schmoller	221
	Max Weber	224
	A Postscript	225
12	The Marginalist School - Forerunners	228
	Overview of the Marginalist School	229
	Antoine Augustin Cournot	234
	Jules Dupuit	239
	Johann Heinrich von Th"unen	242
Past as Prologue 12-1	Gossen: Utility and Belated Fame	243
13	The Marginalist School - Jevons, Menger, von Wieser, and von Bohm-Bawerk	248
	William Stanley Jevons	249
Past as Prologue 13-1	Jevons: Is Gambling Rational?	256
	Carl Menger	257
	Friedrich von Wieser	262
	Eugen von Bohm-Bawerk	266
14	The Marginalist School - Edgeworth and Clark	272
	Francis Y. Edgeworth	273
	John Bates Clark	281
Past as Prologue 14-1	Jacob Viner's Cost Curves	282
Past as Prologue 14-2	Clark, Marginal Productivity, and Executive Salaries	291
15	The Neoclassical School -- Alfred Marshall	294
	Marshall's Life and Method	295
	Utility and Demand	297
	Supply	303
	Equilibrium Price and Quantity	305
	Distribution of Income	308
	Increasing and Decreasing Cost Industries	312
Past as Prologue 15-1	Why Do Firms Exist?	313
16	The Neoclassical School -- Monetary Economics	320
	John Gustav Knut Wicksell	322
	Irving Fisher	328
	Ralph George Hawtrey	335
Past as Prologue 16-1	Hawtrey and Active Monetary Policy, 1982-Present	338
17	The Neoclassical School -- The Departure from Pure Competition	342
	Piero Sraffa	344
	Edward Hastings Chamberlin	347
	Joan Robinson	351
Past as Prologue 17-1	Principals, Agents, and X-Inefficiency	352
Past as Prologue 17-2	Robinson, Monopsony, and Public Policy	359
18	Mathematical Economics	364
	Types of Mathematical Economics	365
	Leon Walras	372
	Wassily Leontief	374
	John von Neumann and Oskar Morgenstern	377
	John R. Hicks	380
Past as Prologue 18-1	John Nash: Discovery, Despair, and the Nobel Prize	381
	Linear Programming	387
19	The Institutionalist School	392
	Overview of the Institutionalist School	393
	Thorstein Bunde Veblen	398
Past as Prologue 19-1	Veblen Goods and Upsloping Demand Curves	401
	Wesley Clair Mitchell	409
	John Kenneth Galbraith	413
Past as Prologue 19-2	Douglass North and the New Institutionalism	419
20	Welfare Economics	422
	Vilfredo Pareto	423
	Arthur Cecil Pigou	427
Past as Prologue 20-1	Pigou and Coase on Externalities	432
	Ludwig von Mises	433
	Oscar Lange	435
	Kenneth Arrow	437
	James M. Buchanan	440
21	The Keynesian School - John Maynard Keynes	446
	Overview of the Keynesian School	447
	John Maynard Keynes	452
Past as Prologue 21-1	Keynes and the Stockholm School	463
22	The Keynesian School -- Developments Since Keynes	468
	Alvin H. Hansen	469
	Paul A. Samuelson	476
Past as Prologue 22-1	Abba Lerner and the "Keynesian Steering Wheel"	477
	The Post-Keynesians	484
	The New Keynesians	487
23	Theories of Economic Growth and Development	492
	Sir Roy F. Harrod and Evsey Domar	494
	Robert M. Solow	496
	Joseph Alois Schumpeter	499
	Ragnar Nurkse	504
Past as Prologue 23-1	Schumpeter, Creative Destruction, and Antitrust Policy	505
	W. Arthur Lewis	509
	Theodore W. Schultz	512
Past as Prologue 23-2	The Todaro Criticisms of Lewis and Schultz	514
24	The Chicago School - The New Classicism	518
	Overview of the Chicago School	519
	Milton Friedman	523
	Robert E. Lucas, Jr.	531
Past as Prologue 24-1	From Stigler to "Lemons"	532
	Gary S. Becker	535
25	Concluding Thoughts	546
Past as Prologue 25-1	The Nobel Laureates in Economics	548
	Name Index	555
	Subject Index	559