“The statesman, who should attempt to direct private people in what manner they ought to employ their capitals, would not only load himself with a most unnecessary attention, but assume an authority which could safely be trusted, not only to no single person, but to no council or senate whatever, and which would nowhere be so dangerous as in the hands of a man who had folly and presumption enough to fancy himself fit to exercise it.”
So I recently finished listening to an audiobook about “The Classical Economists,” which are the people in the early history of economic science. Some of the people I already knew a bit about (such as David Hume, David Ricardo, and John Stuart Mill); while others I didn't know so much about (such as Thomas Malthus, Jean-Baptiste Say, and Nassau Senior). I already knew somewhat more about Adam Smith, since I read his book “The Wealth of Nations” some years ago, and listened to an audiobook about it just dedicated to him and his work – with this other audiobook actually being some five hours long.
Adam Smith
The first half of this “classical economists” audiobook was also focused on Adam Smith, as it turns out. Thus, it spent about an hour on “The Wealth of Nations” and its impact on economics. He is definitely the major figure in this audiobook. I didn't learn that much new stuff in their discussion of Adam Smith, I am sad to say; but it was helpful to hear them frame the discussion in more economic terms, rather than in political philosophy terms as this other audiobook did. This other audiobook was more focused on “The Wealth of Nations” as a work of political philosophy, rather than as a work of economic science. By contrast, this audiobook was written from the standpoint of modern economic science, and thus discussed how Adam Smith has influenced our thinking on this latter subject. Indeed, he is often regarded as the father of economic science, although some credit in this regard is also due to his best friend, who was none other than David Hume. Indeed, some regard the two men as the co-founders of economic science.
David Hume
David Ricardo
Obviously, there were people writing on economics long before these two men. But they were the ones who established it as a science. This is their major contribution. Like all other economists of their time, the classical economists did not have much access to modern mathematics. Thus, it would fall to later generations to bring economics on a more precise mathematical footing, building on the earlier groundwork laid by the classical school. Nonetheless, they laid the groundwork for analytical tools and ways of thinking that are still being used today – and with great success, I might add! Their political conclusions have tended to stand up well over the years, and later generations continue to come across empirical evidence that vindicates what they said, all those years ago.
Jean-Baptiste Say, the author of Say's Law
Their coverage of the other economists, by contrast, taught me a lot. When you consider that I've always loved the classical economists anyway, I'm quite happy that I listened to this audiobook. Nonetheless, I would only recommend it to others if they're über-nerds like myself who are interested in economics in a big way, since this presentation can be a bit technical at times.
If you liked this post, you might also like:
Part of the audiobook series
Great Economic Thinkers
The Classical Economists
See also the audiobook series
Secrets of the Great Investors
Others to be covered later
See also the audiobook series
The Giants of Political Thought
Others to be covered later
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