“Principles Of National Economics”

“Principles of Economics” ): One of the mainstays of the “marginalist revolution” in the history of economic science, modern economics began with this book

• Author: Carl Menger (February 23, 1840 – February 26, 1921): the founder of the Austrian School and the master of the subjective theory of value
• First published: 1871
• Full book title: “Principles of National Economics”
• Known as:
  • One of the mainstays of the “marginalist revolution” in the history of economic science
  • The starting point of modern economics
  • Theoretical works that are the unshakable cornerstone of the Austrian School

Menger’s “Principles of National Economics” is one of the mainstays of the “marginalist revolution” in the history of economic science. Mises once said that this book “made himself an economist,” and of course he was not referring just to Menger’s theory of money and prices, but also to the methods Menger used in this field itself. Like his predecessors in this tradition, Menger was a classical liberal and methodological individualist who viewed economics as the science of individual choice. At that time, the German Historical School rejected theory and believed that economics was nothing more than an accumulation of data for the purpose of serving the country. Twelve years after the publication of “Principles”, Menger published “Inspections” to refute the views of the German Historical School.

This masterpiece, which laid the foundation for the Austrian School, inherited the tradition of German economics, attached great importance to psychological analysis, and transferred the analysis of desires that economics has always paid attention to to the analysis of satisfying desires, and the critical value theory. Objectivist theory. The carefully arranged structure of this work is reminiscent of the style of the ancient capital Vienna at the end of the 19th century. Modern economics began with this book, and Menger also became famous for this book.

This book is not large in length, but it is comparable to “The Wealth of Nations” and “Essentials of Pure Economics”. Because this book elaborated on the theory of marginal utility, Menger deservedly became one of the founders of modern economics.

In 1871, Carl Menger’s “Principles of National Economics” came out. In the following years, the dominant British economics faced a series of challenges for the first time. In the 1880s, Menger attracted a large number of followers and formed a powerful Austrian school. Like Walras and Jevons at the time in their works, Menger clearly revealed the theory of value based on subjectivity, and for the first time fully explained the theory of marginal utility (a certain property owned by an individual). The greater the quantity of goods, the smaller the value he attributes to each unit of goods). In addition, Menger also explained that the reason for the creation of money in the free market is that people need a commodity that is most suitable for exchange. People do not use this commodity for consumption, but for exchange.

Carl Menger, the founder of the Austrian School, believed that economics is the science of human action based on deductive logic. He revived the “Scholastic-French” style of economics, and through With his efforts, this theory was further consolidated. He became the advocate and founder of “marginal utility” at the same time as England’s Jevons and France’s Varras. Today, Menger’s work remains the preeminent text for economic analysis, and every Austrian economist considers himself, to some extent, a student of Menger.