The Shaping of Political Economy in the Enlightenment

  • Andrew S. Skinner
Chapter

Abstract

Thirty-five years ago, Alec Macfie addressed the question of the ‘Scottish tradition in economic thought’. He sought to isolate a number of characteristic features of the Scottish approach and in so doing drew attention to the sociological, philosophical and historical dimensions which Adam Smith together with his predecessors and successors had brought to the study of economic phenomena. In particular, Professor Macfie gave prominence to a certain penchant for systematic argument, and to an approach which was ‘more concerned with giving a broad, well balanced comprehensive picture, seen from different points of view than with logical rigour’ (1967, p. 22).

Keywords

Political Economy Foreign Trade Exchange Economy Economic Phenomenon Historical Method 
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Copyright information

© Hiroshi Mizuta and Chuhei Sugiyama 1993

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  • Andrew S. Skinner

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