The Cambridge revival of political economy / Nuno Ornelas Martins.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Martins, Nuno.

Series:

Economics as social theory ; 34.

Economics as social theory ; 34

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Neoclassical school of economics.

Physical Description:

xxii, 460 pages ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Abingdon, Oxon ; New York : Routledge, 2014.

Summary:

The marginalist revolution of the late nineteenth century consolidated what Karl Marx and Piero Sraffa called 'vulgar economy', bringing with it an emphasis on a scarcity theory that replaced the classical surplus theory. However, the classical political economy of Adam Smith and David Ricardo has been revived within the Cambridge economic tradition. This book looks at how different branches of the Cambridge economic tradition have focused on various aspects of this revival over time. The author shows that classical political economy is distinct from vulgar political economy in terms of its economic, social, and ethical theory, with each difference resting on an issue of ontology. Structured in three parts, the book examines the central contested aspects of these theories, namely the nature of value, the relationship between human beings and social structure, and the nature of human wellbeing. The Cambridge Revival of Political Economy will be relevant to students and researchers within the fields of political economy, History of economic thought, politics, and philosophy. Book jacket.

Contents:

Foreword / by G. C. Harcourt Preface

Economic theory

The theory of value and distribution

The ontology of value and distribution

The accumulation of capital

The principle of effective demand

Mathematics and reality

Social theory

Rational fools

Social ontology

Heterodox economics as surplus theory

Platonism and Cambridge

Evolutionary social theory

History and evolution

Ethical theory

Uncertainty and ethical analysis

Justice and the capability approach

Ontology and moral realism

Capabilities as primary (causal) powers.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780415676830

0415676835

9780415676847

0415676843

OCLC:

714730269