A Treatise on Political Economy

by Jean-Baptiste Say (Editor)

Jean-Baptiste Say (1767-1832) has been described as a revolutionary, an author of scholarly books and popular tracts, a social philosopher, a successful entrepreneur-a remarkable Renaissance man. He is best known as author of the law of markets, known as Say's law, and as the first to coin the term "entrepreneur." Say's concern with the average interested citizen and his zeal for economic education for the masses is most apparent in his classic work, A Treatise on Political Economy. Readers will see that Say is without doubt a luminary of classical economics. He single-handedly revived the study of political economy from its decline and kept it alive during a difficult period of opposition to liberal ideas. Say had a missionary belief that society will be best served if the principles of political economy are widely disseminated and understood by the citizenry. His organization of the Treatise's subject matter-production, distribution, and consumption of wealth-continues to guide authors of economic textbooks to this day. His treatment of the role of the entrepreneur as a contributor to production different from that of either the manager or the capitalist was the most advanced of his times. In their new introduction, Quddus and Rashid note that present-day readers of this volume will benefit from the remarkable freshness of Say's ideas. The longevity of this volume proves that good ideas can successfully withstand the test of time. The role played by the Treatise in spreading liberal economic ideas and especially laissez-faire and free trade in France, the rest of Europe, and in the newly independent United States must also be appreciated. One suspects Say would have liked nothing better than to have his Treatise attract entrepreneurs, managers, and other non-specialist readers to economics. Given the emphasis on capitalism, free markets and unrestricted global trade republication of this great classic could not be more timely. Political economists, social philosophers, and those in business fields will find it indispensable reading.

Genres: Economics, Politics, Philosophy, Nonfiction, Classics, History

520 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1815

About the author

Jean-Baptiste Say was a French economist and businessman. He had classically liberal views and argued in favor of competition, free trade, and lifting restraints on business. He is best known for Say's Law, also known as the law of markets, which he popularized. Scholars disagree on the surprisingly subtle question of whether it was Say who first stated what we now call Say's Law.

Reviews

[Josh Kraushaar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Need to re-read the last 50 pages of book 1 (wherever he starts detailing his views on monetary economics) once I have a better understanding of monetary economics and can appreciate what he has to say/debunk what he gets wrong.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

A classic economic text. The five stars is for challenging my thinking. I got the most out of Book 3 on Consumption. Specifically, his thoughts on productive consumption (I would have used the word investment) vs unproductive consumption were different from my own and are forcing me to reconsider them. Naturally, I didn't agree with everything, but Say generally impressed me as a clear-thinker with strong opinions. I would recommend this only to people very interested in economics and specifically the evolution of economic thought.

[Ítalo Borges · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilhante. Escrita clara e de fácil intelecção. Este livro é mais objetivo e sucinto que " A Riqueza das Nações". O "Discurso Preliminar" é genial. Além disso é bastante rico em apresentar o pensamento e as preocupações daquela época (início do século XIX). Se todos leigos em economia lessem este livro (eu sou um deles, sou biólogo) muitas propostas governamentais seria muito melhores avaliadas por seus cidadãos.

[Anna]

Also am interested in A Catechism of Political Economy by Say.

[Andry]

good

[Sylvester · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reviewed here: https://sylvesterkuo.wordpress.com/20...