Saylor.org

Back to Course Overview

Questions? Consult the FAQs!

Search Q&A Center

Readings

• 1.1.1 Reading: reshafim.org: André Dollinger’s “The Ancient Egyptian Economy”

  Link: reshafim.org: André Dollinger’s “The Ancient Egyptian Economy” (PDF)
   
  Instructions: This website is an Egyptian based site (Refashim means ‘sparks”) promoting Egyptian culture and history.  This reading is relatively brief and easy to read and presents an overview of Egypt which will nicely complement the lecture presented below.
  
  Terms of Use: This material has been used with permission for non-commercial use by André Dollinger.The original version can be found here.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 1.1.2.1 Reading: Economicthinking.org’s version of The Freeman: Ideas on Liberty: Gregory F. Rehmke’s “Property Rights and Law among the Ancient Greeks”

  Link: Economicthinking.org’s version of The Freeman: Ideas on Liberty: Gregory F. Rehmke’s “Property Rights and Law among the Ancient Greeks”
   
  Instructions:  Click on the link above to go to the Economicthinking.org website.  Once on the website, you may want to click on the “PDF of this article for printing” hyperlink for access to the PDF format if you have Adobe Reader.  (It is easier to read in the PDF version).  Alternatively, you may read the entire webpage (HTML).  This reading provides a neat overview of the political framework for ancient Greek economic thought and connects to the thinking of later schools, most notably the Classical school.
  
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 1.1.2.2 Reading: Project Gutenberg’s version of Xenophon’s "The Economist"

  Link: Project Gutenberg’s version of Xenophon’s The Economist (HTML)
   
  Also available in:
  Google Books
   
  Instructions:  Read this entire work. 
   
  This text is written as a dialogue between Socrates and Critobulus, the son of one of Socrates’ disciples.  Socrates asks questions, and Critobulus answers them.  This format is typical of many Greek writings designed to present and explain ideas.  Notice that when Critobulus asks questions, Socrates replies with a story from Ischomachus, a gentleman farmer.  Many historians believe that Ischomachus represents the author’s own thoughts.  In other words, it doesn’t matter much who the speakers are; the entire work is a way for Xenophon to express his ideas.  Why wouldn’t Xenophon directly write his thoughts in his own voice?  Remember what happened to Socrates, who was condemned to death; it was less risky to hide behind the mask of characters.
   
  In the author’s translation, we learn about Xenophon:  “Xenophon the Athenian was born 431 B.C. He was a pupil of Socrates.  He marched with the Spartans, and was exiled from Athens.  Sparta gave him land and property in Scillus, where he lived for many years before having to move once more to settle in Corinth.  He died in 354 B.C.”
   
  In terms of economics, think about how managing household and agriculture was discussed.  Pay particular attention to how goods are valued and what would constitute a fair exchange.  
   
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 1.1.2.3 Reading: Project Gutenberg’s version of Aristotle’s "A Treatise on Government"

  Link:  Project Gutenberg’s version of Aristotle’s A Treatise on Government (HTML)
   
  Also available in:
  Google Books
  PDF
   
  Instructions:  Read Book VII. 
   
  Aristotle was born three to four generations after Xenophon.  His work is best known for introducing the scientific method and for breaking down the complex into its basic parts.  Aristotle’s writing style is direct.  Note that he does not use the dialogue technique we saw in Xenophon’s work.
   
  Reflect on how Aristotle describes the nature of happiness and the role of material goods and ask yourself how Aristotle’s view of social mobility reflects the concept of comparative advantage.
   
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 1.2 Reading: Wikipedia’s version of Fan Li’s “Twelve Golden Rules and Safeguards”

  Link:  Wikipedia’s version of Fan Li’s “Twelve Golden Rules and Safeguards” (PDF)
   
  Instructions:  Read these twenty-four rules for business. 
   
  These rules were written in the fifth century BCE, about the same time as the classical Greek works we are reading.  The author was both an adviser to the imperial court and a practitioner of medicine.  Note how the rules are presented and compare them to the lengthy discourses found in the Greek writings we read earlier.
   
  Terms of Use: The article above is released under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0 (HTML).  You can find the original Wikipedia version of this article here (HTML).

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 1.2 Reading: Institute for Business Cycle Research: Justin Ptak’s “The Prehistory of Modern Economic Thought: The Aristotle in Austrian Theory”

  Link: Institute for Business Cycle Research: Justin Ptak’s “The Prehistory of Modern Economic Thought: The Aristotle in Austrian Theory” (PDF)
  
  Instructions: After clicking on the link above, type in the author’s name – Justin Ptak – in the slot marked search on the right hand side of the page. You will see two matches. The article you need is #2.
   
  While this paper reviews Greek thought (optional) you should scroll down to and read the following sections:  Laozi and government intervention, Chuang Tzu, Spontaneous order and the state, and Pao Ching-yen on Stateless society and the Power of nation. You need Adobe reader to view his article.
   
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 1.3 Reading: Fordham University’s Internet Indian History Sourcebook: Paul Halsall’s version of selections from Chanakya’s Arthashastra

  Link:  Fordham University’s Internet Indian History Sourcebook:Paul Halsall’s version of selections from Chanakya’s Arthashastra (PDF)
   
  Also available in:
  EPUB
  
  Instructions:  Read these selected passages.  The authorship of the work is the source of some debate amongst historians.  Chanakya may have been the prime minister of an Indian empire in the third century BCE, although some scholars trace the work to some 500 years later. 
   
  Note how the author views the role of woman and marriage.  Consider how slaves may have been treated in their role as economic participants, as the work focuses on economic punishments for disobeying ethical imperatives.
   
  Terms of Use: This material is in the public domain. 

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 2.1.1 Reading: History of Economic Thought: Hunter Thompson’s “The School of Scholastic Economic Thought”

  Link: History of Economic Thought: Hunter Thompson’s “The School of Scholastic Economic Thought” (PDF)
   
  Instructions:  Read this brief summary of the Scholastics’ contribution to economic thought.
   
  Reading this summary should take approximately 15 minutes.
   
  Terms of Use: This resource is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 United States License. It is attributed to Tangient LLC, and the original version can be found here.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 2.1.1 Reading: The Institute of Islamic Banking and Insurance’s “Islamic Economic Thought”

  Link: The Institute of Islamic Banking and Insurance’s “Islamic Economic Thought” (HTML)
   
  Instructions: Read this article for an overview of the principles of Islamic economic thought. 
   
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 2.1.2 Reading: The Fathers of the English Dominican Province’s translation of St. Thomas Aquinas's Summa Theologica, “Of Cheating, Which is Committed in Buying and Selling” and “Of the Sin of Usury”

  Link: The Fathers of the English Dominican Province’s translation of St. Thomas Aquinas's Summa Theologica, “Of Cheating, Which Is Committed in Buying and Selling” (PDF) and “Of the Sin of Usury” (PDF)
   
  Also available in: (“Of Cheating”)
  Google Books
    
  Also available in: (“Of the Sin of Usury”)
  Google Books
    
  Instructions:  Read these passages from this seminal Scholastic work. 
   
  Thomas Aquinas was perhaps the most influential Catholic scholar.  He was born in Italy in the thirteenth century.  His writings are wide-ranging, and we are focusing here on what constitutes a fair exchange.  When Thomas Aquinas wrote this, many were giving extensive consideration to the determination of a fair interest rate; this was in reaction to leading Islamic thought of the era, which argued for a complete prohibition on the charging of interest.   Note how the form is similar to Xenophon’s dialogue, which we read earlier.
   
  Terms of Use: This material is in the public domain. 

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 2.2.1 Reading: Library of Economics and Liberty: Laura LaHaye’s “Mercantilism”

  Link: Library of Economics and Liberty: Laura LaHaye’s “Mercantilism” (HTML)
   
  Instructions: Read this article on Mercantilism and its historical significance to international trade patterns.  This reading should take approximately 15 minutes to complete.
   
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 2.2.2 Reading: Project Gutenberg’s version of Sir William Petty’s “Essays on Mankind and Political Arithmetic”

  Link:  Project Gutenberg’s version of Sir William Petty’s “Essays on Mankind and Political Arithmetic” (PDF)
   
  Also available in:
  EPUB
  
  Instructions:  This is a lengthy series of essays.  Read through them, paying particular attention to his methods for calculating economic phenomena.
   
  Petty may be considered one of the first econometricians (an econometrician uses mathematical techniques to develop economic statistics).  He was an articulate proponent of mercantilism and lived during a vibrant period of English colonial expansion.  The 1600s were a time of great wealth building, but also of significant disparity.  This text is concerned with collecting taxes and maximizing the nation’s colonization interests. 
   
  Terms of Use: This material is in the public domain. 

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 2.3.1 Reading: Project Gutenberg’s version of Adam Smith’s An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations

  Link: Project Gutenberg’s version of Adam Smith’s An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (HTML)
   
  Also available in:
  Google Books
  PDF
   
  Instructions:  This massive work was both an attack on the principles of mercantilism and a discourse on moral and political philosophy.   Read Book Four, which specifically addresses mercantilism.  (The first three books serve as a bridge to our next topic: Classical Economists.)
   
  Adam Smith lived in the 1700s, a time when England lost control over its American colonies.  His work is, in part, a reaction to his perception of the difficulties of managing colonies under a Mercantilist system.  Smith is cited by many historians as the most influential economist in history because his writings are applicable to the problems faced by people in modern society.  
   
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 2.3.2 Reading: Liberty Fund, Inc.’s The Online Library of Liberty: Karen Vaughn’s Locke on Property: A Bibliographic Essay

  Link: Liberty Fund, Inc.’s The Online Library of Liberty: Karen Vaughn’s Locke on Property: A Bibliographic Essay (HTML)
   
  Instructions: Please read until you reach the section marked “Difficulties of Interpretation in Locke’s Scholarship.”  This reading provides a convenient summary of Locke’s economic thought.  Although he is considered more of a political philosopher, his ideas influenced our own revolution and the thought of many of the founding fathers.
                                     
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 2.3.3 Reading: New World Encyclopedia: Richard Cantillon

  Link: New World Encyclopedia: Richard Cantillon (HTML)
   
  Instructions: Please read the entire article.  This is one of the more comprehensive presentations on a little-known yet quite innovative economic thinker.  Truly a post-Mercantilist thinker, Cantillon entered areas of economic analysis few had traveled to that point.  Considered to be part of the French school of thought known as the Physiocrats, his work had more influence on British and Austrian economic thinkers coming after him than any one of his contemporaries.
   
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 2.3.4 Reading: Ludwig von Mises Institute: Murray N. Rothbard’s “Biography of A.R.J. Turgot (1727-1781)”

  Link: Ludwig von Mises Institute: Murray N. Rothbard’s “Biography of A.R.J. Turgot (1727-1781)” (PDF)
   
  Instructions: Read this brief but informative bio, which demonstrates that Turgot had the opportunity to practice his economics as a Finance minister to King Louis XVI in the years before the Revolution. His ideas were not shared entirely by his Physiocrat contemporaries, and he was one who supported the ancien regime. Like Cantillon, his ideas became part of the British classical tradition. Some even call him the first capitalist thinker because of his focus on financial and physical capital.
  
  Terms of use: This resource is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. It is attributed to the Ludwig von Mises Institute, and the original version can be found here.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 3.1 Reading: Project Gutenberg’s version of Adam Smith’s An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations.

  Link: Project Gutenberg’s version of Adam Smith’s An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations. (PDF)
   
  Also available in:
  Google Books
  PDF
  EPUB
   
  Instructions:  Read the first three books of this work. In these sections, you will see how Smith lays out his framework for a free market society.  As you read, note how he breaks down the “stock” or capital into its constituent parts, and consider the following questions and their implications: How does he view slavery from an economic perspective? What does Smith mean when he describes the free market as “an invisible   hand?” What do you think about his ideas on division of labor?
   
  Terms of Use: This material is in the public domain. 

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 3.2 Reading: Project Gutenberg’s version of David Ricardo’s Principles of Political Economy and Taxation

  Link:  Project Gutenberg’s version of David Ricardo’s Principles of Political Economy and Taxation (PDF)
   
  Also available in:
  Google Books
  EPUB
   
  Instructions:  Read the entire document.  This work provides a fundamental framework for describing a wide range of economic activities.  His labor theory of value, for example, in turn explains the concept of “comparative advantage” and specialization of labor.  These concepts can be applied to free trade among nations or to the division of household labor. 
  Staunch capitalists often cite Ricardo and his work as evidence of the power of free markets.  Curiously, Marxists and Communists have also pointed to Ricardo’s work to justify their own theories.  The flexibility of his theory is a testament to his timeless contribution to economics. As you read, consider how Ricardo assigns value to labor and his description of how taxation affects wellbeing.  Note the way in which he cites Smith repeatedly throughout the document.
   
  Terms of Use: This material is in the public domain. 

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 3.3 Reading: Utilitarianism.com’s version of Jeremy Bentham’s An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation

  Link: Utilitarianism.com’s version of Jeremy Bentham’s An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation (PDF)
   
  Also available in:
  EPUB
  
  Instructions:  Read the first five chapters.  Bentham was a contemporary of Smith.  Note how Bentham introduces the concept of utility as it relates to human perception.  His later works, particularly The Rationale of Reward(1825) and The Rationale of Punishment(1830), go on to detail a type of calculus for measuring individual and social happiness.  These form the basis for much of modern economic thought on choice theory and utility.
   
  Terms of Use: This material is in the public domain. 

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 3.4 Reading: Project Gutenberg’s version of Karl Marx’s and Friedrich Engels’ The Communist Manifesto

  Link:  Project Gutenberg’s version of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels’ The Communist Manifesto (PDF)
   
  Also available in
  Google Books
  Kindle (Free)
  PDF
  EPUB
   
  Instructions:  Read the entire work.  Many historians consider Marx to have been the last Classical Economist.  In his writings, Marx compared Europe’s feudal agrarian system to the newly emerging system of industrial production.  He noted that as workers left farms for cities, their needs changed and was disturbed by the growing disparity between those who controlled the new industrial production system and those who labored under it.  In the above work, note how Marx and his colleague Engels address the role of labor in society, paying particular attention to their exhortation that workers unite against the inequities and abuses of capital.
   
  Terms of Use: This material is in the public domain. 

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 3.5 Reading: Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas’s Economic Insights: Robert L. Formaini’s “Jean-Baptiste Say: Foundations of France’s Free Trade Tradition”

  Link: Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas’s Economic Insights: Robert L. Formaini’s “Jean-Baptiste Say: Foundations of France’s Free Trade Tradition” (PDF)
   
  Instructions: This article is available for download as a PDF by clicking the link above.  The PDF document is 4 pages.
  
  This is an accessible reading on the life and works of Jean Baptiste Say, known as the French “David Ricardo.”  It includes key excerpts from his Treatise on Political Economy.  He is best known for the infamous Say’s law, which reads as “supply creates its own demand,” a concept that is not appreciated as it is taken out of context.  Because he wrote in French, the British tradition does not recognize his work.  
   
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 3.6.1 Reading: The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis: Madeline Christensen’s “Cement to Our Union: Hamilton’s Economic Vision”

  Link: The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis: Madeline Christensen’s “Cement to Our Union: Hamilton’s Economic Vision” (HTML)
   
  Instructions: Please read the introductory text on the webpage, and then click on “Download the PDF” to access the article.  Please read the entire article (3 pages).  Despite its title, this brief well written essay presents a compact review of the economic views of Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson as it effected the drafting of the U.S. Constitution and the antagonists’ subsequent public service.  Hamilton followed contemporary British thought, while Jefferson considered himself to be a French physiocrat.
   
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 3.6.2 Reading: The Peel Web: Dr. Marjie Bloy’s “The Anti-Corn-Law League”

  Link:  The Peel Web: Dr. Marjie Bloy’s “The Anti-Corn-Law League” (HTML)
   
  Instructions: Please read the entire webpage linked above.  The Manchester School was formed by businessmen/economists on that city to fight the English Corn Laws, laws which essentially restricted trade in an effort to control wheat (corn in British) prices.  The school modeled its views after David Ricardo.
   
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 4.1.2 Reading: Marxists.org’s version of Alfred Marshall’s Principles of Economics: An Introductory Volume

  Link: Marxists.org’s version of Alfred Marshall’s Principles of Economics: An Introductory Volume  (PDF)
   
  Also available in
  Google Books
  Kindle ($5.85)
   
  Instructions:  Read the introductions to Books One through Five of this significant textbook.  Marshall was one of the founders of Neo-Classical Economics, and this text would influence prominent economists for the next century.  Think about how the chapters form a general overview of modern microeconomic thinking.
   
  Terms of Use: This material is in the public domain.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 4.1.3 Reading: York University: Journal of Economic Perspectives: Avi G. Cohen and G.C. Harcourt’s “Whatever Happened to the Cambridge Capital Theory Controversies?”

  Link: York University: Journal of Economic Perspectives: Avi G. Cohen and G.C. Harcourt’s “Whatever Happened to the Cambridge Capital Theory Controversies?” (PDF)
  
  Instructions: Click on the “Full-Text Articke” link to open the PDF file; Adobe Reader is required.  Please read this article in its entirety (16 pages).  This relatively nontechnical review by two of the more eminent historians of economic thought provides a prescient insight into the evolution of capital theory through the 19^th and 20^th century.  You will follow the birth of the marginalist revolution and its Neoclassical form, as well as the more contemporary challenges to that form.  You will be exposed to many of the key figures of 20^th century economics.
   
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 4.2 Reading: The University of Adelaide’s version of John Maynard Keynes’ The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money: “Chapter 22: Notes on the Trade Cycle”

  Link: The University of Adelaide’s version of John Maynard Keynes’ The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money: “Chapter 22: Notes on the Trade Cycle”(HTML)
   
  Also available in:
  Kindle ($2.99)
   
  Instructions:  Read Chapter 22, “Notes on the Trade Cycle.”  Keynes was an influential British economist in the early twentieth century.  His work focuses on how to use government resources to manage the business cycle and smooth out the booms and busts of industrial economies.  The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money describes methods to manage and guide national production.  Trade is an important part of economic growth and fluctuates similarly to national economic cycles.  Think about how the economy cycles and its impact on unemployment and well-being.
   
  Terms of Use: This material is in the public domain. 

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 4.3.3 Reading: University of Toronto: John Munro’s “Modern Quantity Theories of Money: From Fisher to Friedman”

  Link:  University of Toronto: John Munro’s “Modern Quantity Theories of Money: From Fisher to Friedman” (HTML)
   
  Instructions: Read up to the appendix.  This presentation provides a review of the evolution of modern monetarist thought and its critique.  There are basic algebraic formulae presented, which you should be familiar with from ECON102 Principles of Macroeconomics.
   
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the web pages above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 5.1 Reading: The New World Encyclopedia: “Institutional Economics”

  Link: The New World Encyclopedia: “Institutional Economics” (HTML)
   
  Instructions: Please read the webpage in its entirety.  It is difficult to find substantive material on institutional thought, and there are so many individuals to draw from.  This presentation provides a useful summary of the key thinkers and their works.  The origins of institutionalism are presented, and the most important thinkers are highlighted.
   
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 5.2 Reading: Newschool’s version of Paul Davidson’s “Samuelson and the Keynesian/Post-Keynesian Revolution: The Evidence Showing Who Killed Cock Robin”

  Link: Newschool’s version of Paul Davidson’s “Samuelson and the Keynesian/Post-Keynesian Revolution: The Evidence Showing Who Killed Cock Robin” (PDF)
   
  Instructions: Davidson’s a leading post-Keynesian British economist and a true historian on post-Classical economic thought.  The article will provide you with insight into the role Paul Samuelson played in bringing Keynesian thought into the textbooks of today and the costs and benefits of doing so.
   
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 5.3 Reading: The University of Chicago Magazine: Michael Fitzgerald’s “Chicago Schooled”

  Link: The University of Chicago Magazine: Michael Fitzgerald’s “Chicago Schooled” (HTML)
   
  Instructions: Please read the entire article.  You already have a good grasp of the core of Monetarism from the previous unit, along with the work of Milton Friedman, the “dean” of the Chicago school.  This article will introduce you to some of the other key players and issues tackled by this American school of thought.
   
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!

• 5.4 Reading: The Freeman: Hans Sennholz’s “Radical Economics: Old and New”

  Link: The Freeman: Hans Sennholz’s “Radical Economics: Old and New” (HTML)
   
  Instructions: Please read the entire article linked above.  There are few radical economists left today, and it is difficult to find little more than articles and blogs which simply condemn the discipline.  This is a dated but in fact quite valid review of the approach taken by these economists at a time when their ideas were new and fresh.  Professor Sennholz was a libertarian economist.  Grove City College is legendary as perhaps the best exponent of libertarian thought in this country as far as higher education is concerned.  It has never accepted any kind of government aid or support, even for research grants.
   
  Terms of Use: Please respect the copyright and terms of use displayed on the webpage above.

  See a broken link? Please let us know!