Lionel Robbins’s now famous lectures on the history of economic thought comprise one of the greatest accounts since World War II of the evolution of economic ideas. This volume represents the first time those lectures have been published, with a title A History of Economic Thought: The LSE Lectures. Lord Robbins (1898-1984) was a remarkably accomplished thinker, writer, and public figure. He made important contributions to economic theory, methodology, and policy analysis, directed the economic section of Winston Churchill’s War Cabinet, and served as chairman of the Financial Times. As a historian of economic ideas, he ranks with Joseph Schumpeter and Jacob Viner as one of the foremost scholars of the century.
These lectures, delivered at the London School of Economics between 1979 and 1981 and tape-recorded by Robbins’s grandson, display his mastery of the intellectual history of economics, his infectious enthusiasm for the subject, and his eloquence and incisive wit. They cover a broad chronological range, beginning with Plato, Aristotle, and Aquinas, focusing extensively on Adam Smith, Thomas Malthus and the classicals, and finishing with a discussion of moderns and marginalists from Marx to Alfred Marshall.
Robbins takes a varied and inclusive approach to intellectual history. As he says in his first lecture: “I shall go my own sweet way—sometimes talk about doctrine, sometimes talk about persons, sometimes talk about periods.” The lectures are united by Robbins’s conviction that it is impossible to understand adequately contemporary institutions and social sciences without understanding the ideas behind their development. Authoritative yet accessible, combining the immediacy of the spoken word with Robbins’s exceptional talent for clear, well-organized exposition, this volume will be welcomed by anyone interested in the intellectual origins of the modern world.
List of Figures
Foreword
Introduction
A. ANTICIPATIONS
LECTURE 1
Introduction—Plato
LECTURE 2
Plato and Aristotle
LECTURE 3
Aquinas and the Scholastics
LECTURE 4
Pamphleteers—Money (Oresme, Bodin, “W.S.”)
LECTURE 5
Pamphleteers—Mercantilism (Malynes, Misselden, Mun)
LECTURE 6
Sir William Petty
LECTURE 7
Child and Locke (Interest)
B. EMERGENCE OF SYSTEMS
LECTURE 8
Cantillon
LECTURE 9
Cantillon (cont.)—Physiocracy
LECTURE 10
Physiocrats—Turgot
LECTURE 11
Locke and Hume on Property—Hume on Money
LECTURE 12
Hume on Interest and Trade—Precursors of Adam Smith
LECTURE 13
General Survey of Smith’s Intentions—The Wealth of Nations: Analytical (I)
LECTURE 14
The Wealth of Nations: Analytical (II)
LECTURE 15
The Wealth of Nations: Analytical (III)—Policy (I)
LECTURE 16
The Wealth of Nations: Policy
C. NINETEENTH-CENTURY CLASSICISM
LECTURE 17
General Review—Malthus on Population
LECTURE 18
Value and Distribution: Historical Origin—Analytical (I)
LECTURE 19
Value and Distribution: Analytical (II)
LECTURE 20
Value and Distribution: Analytical (III)
LECTURE 21
Overall Equilibrium
LECTURE 22
International Trade
LECTURE 23
John Stuart Mill
D. OTHER MID-NINETEENTH-CENTURY THOUGHT
LECTURE 24
Mill (cont.)—Saint-Simon and Marx
LECTURE 25
Marx (cont.)—List and the Historical School
E. BEGINNINGS OF MODERN ANALYSIS
LECTURE 26
The Historical School (cont.)—Precursors of Change: Cournot, von Thünen, and Rae
LECTURE 27
The Marginal Revolution (I): Jevons
LECTURE 28
The Marginal Revolution (II): Jevons and Menger
LECTURE 29
The Marginal Revolution (III): Costs (Wieser)—The Pricing of Factor Services (Wieser, Clark, Wicksteed)
LECTURE 30
Capital Theory: Böhm-Bawerk and Fisher
LECTURE 31
Walras—Pareto
LECTURE 32
Marshall
LECTURE 33
Money: Fisher, Marshall, Wicksell
AFTERWORD
The Further Evolution of the Subject
APPENDIX A
Robbins’ Reading List
APPENDIX B
Robbins’ Writings in the History of Economic Thought
References
Index
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Kawah Buku (store manager) –
“Everything about this book breathes affection: Lionel Robbins’s concern for his students down the decades, the editors’ sensitive treatment of their subject, and Professor William Baumol’s modest justification for his foreward: ‘I was there!'”—Arthur Seldon, Times Literary Supplement
Kawah Buku (store manager) –
“For anyone who has taught a course in the history of economic thought or who has more than a passing interest in the field, this book will be a delight.”—Choice
Kawah Buku (store manager) –
“As the 20th century draws to a close, the history of economic thought is beginning to look different, and the publication of Lionel Robbins’s London School of Economics lectures on the subject will contribute to this process of rethinking… A welcome relief from the ponderousness of many volumes on this subject.”—Virginia Quarterly Review
Kawah Buku (store manager) –
“The book… is filled with insights… The editors, in order to retain to the fullest the inimitable flavor of Robbins’ personality, have wisely not tidied up the text… [They] deserve high praise for making these fine lectures available.”—Mises Review
Kawah Buku (store manager) –
“With a profound sense of humor and highly engaging anecdotes, this master teacher provided an unusual opportunity to discover not only the ideas but also the very different frames of reference that inspired the contributions of these great minds to our present understanding of economics. Essential reading.”—Library Journal
Kawah Buku (store manager) –
“These lectures reflect Robbins’ two personae–the scholarly exponent of the centuries of economic thought and the passionate advocate of classical liberalism. A decisive part of his intellectual armoury was his often elegant, classical spoken English, which evoked a mixture of awe and wonder. In his LSE lectures, which he may have felt were his last epistles to posterity, the language is more informal, sometimes, colloquial, even unfamiliarly conversational.”—Arthur Seldon, Times Literary Supplement
Kawah Buku (store manager) –
“Robbins obviously loved the history of economic thought, but the passion that shows through on each page of this book is more than a passion for the history of economics. Robbins loved the discipline of economics itself, and the lectures reflect the gusto with which he had spent his life pursuing its mastery.”—Bradley W. Bateman, EH.NET