1300 187 187
There is a "missing idea" in economic thought: the relationship between an increase in consumption and increased productivity. It disappeared thanks to an attitude which Heckscher referred to as a "fear of goods." This book attempts to trace the absence of this idea, its origins and consequences, from ancient times to the present day.
Cosimo Perrotta seeks in these pages to establish the theoretical importance of the idea of "consumption as an investment" as well as to conduct an in-depth study into the changing and contradictory attitudes towards consumption in the history of economic thought.
Until now, there has been no book which has charted the history of consumption through the history economic thought. Thankfully, this volume fills the gap admirably and as such will greatly interest historians from many disciplines as well as economists generally.
| Preface | p. xvii |
| Acknowledgements | p. xviii |
| Introduction | p. 1 |
| The Ancients and Inner Wealth | p. 11 |
| Patristics | p. 43 |
| Medieval Dualism | p. 57 |
| Italian Humanism Ignores Economic Development | p. 87 |
| From Alms to Human Capital | p. 112 |
| Spain's Unproductive Consumption | p. 137 |
| Expanding Production | p. 158 |
| Productive and Unproductive Labour | p. 179 |
| Foreign Trade | p. 204 |
| The Enlightenment Theory of Development | p. 223 |
| Notes | p. 244 |
| References | p. 291 |
| Subject Index | p. 364 |
| Name Index | p. 370 |
| Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved. |
ISBN: 9780415306195
ISBN-10: 0415306191
Series: Routledge Studies in the History of Economics
Audience:
General
Format:
Hardcover
Language:
English
Number Of Pages: 400
Published: 26th August 2004
Dimensions (cm): 23.4 x 15.6
x 2.7
Weight (kg): 0.726
9am - 4pm AEST, Monday - Friday
