A Philosopher’s Economist: Hume & The Rise of Capitalism - Hardcover

Schabas, Margaret; Wennerlind, Carl

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 022659744X ISBN 13: 9780226597447

Verlag: University of Chicago Press, 2020

Inhaltsangabe

Reconsiders the centrality and legacy of Hume’s economic thought and serves as an important springboard for reflections on the philosophical underpinnings of economics.

Although David Hume’s contributions to philosophy are firmly established, his economics has been largely overlooked. A Philosopher’s Economist offers the definitive account of Hume’s “worldly philosophy” and argues that economics was a central preoccupation of his life and work. Margaret Schabas and Carl Wennerlind show that Hume made important contributions to the science of economics, notably on money, trade, and public finance.  Hume’s astute understanding of human behavior provided an important foundation for his economics and proved essential to his analysis of the ethical and political dimensions of capitalism. Hume also linked his economic theory with policy recommendations and sought to influence people in power. While in favor of the modern commercial world, believing that it had and would continue to raise standards of living, promote peaceful relations, and foster moral refinement, Hume was not an unqualified enthusiast. He recognized many of the underlying injustices of capitalism, its tendencies to promote avarice and inequality, as well as its potential for political instability and absolutism.
 
Hume’s imprint on modern economics is profound and far-reaching, whether through his close friend Adam Smith or later admirers such as John Maynard Keynes and Friedrich Hayek. Schabas and Wennerlind’s book compels us to reconsider the centrality and legacy of Hume’s economic thought—for both his time and ours—and thus serves as an important springboard for reflections on the philosophical underpinnings of economics.

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Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Margaret Schabas is professor of philosophy at the University of British Columbia. She is the author of A World Ruled by Number and The Natural Origins of Economics. Carl Wennerlind is professor of history at Barnard College, Columbia University. He is the author of Casualties of Credit and the coauthor of Scarcity.

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: University of Chicago Press
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2020
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 022659744X
• ISBN 13: 9780226597447
• Einband: Gebundene Ausgabe
• Anzahl der Seiten: 316
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: The University of Chicago Press; https://press.uchicago.edu/index.html; ; 5801 S. Ellis Avenue; Chicago; IL; 60637; USA
• Verantwortliche Person: Nicht verfügbar