Abstract
In this chapter, I will make a critical and methodological analysis of the theses presented by Piketty in his book “Capital in the twenty first century” (2014). Income distribution and long-term growth are linked to the specificities of capital and/or to the choice of a value theory. The definition of the nature of capital and/or the choice of a value theory are the necessary conditions to explain the modalities of growth and income distribution.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
See Marwil-Dávila and Oreiro (2016).
- 2.
See our discussion in Chapter II.
- 3.
For an alternative analysis, see Marwil-Dávila and Oreiro (2016).
- 4.
In respect to the theoretical an empirical limits of such approach, see J. Felipe and J. S. L. McCombie (2005).
- 5.
The French version (2013) is different from the English one (2014); I will use both.
- 6.
Patchwork, in the sense Piketty uses various incompatible theoretical frameworks, and he does not respect the internal coherency of each one. Such observation may be applied both to the way Piketty uses orthodox and to heterodox frameworks.
References
Besomi, Daniele. 2001. Harrod’s Dynamics and the Theory of Growth: The Story of a Mistaken Attribution. Cambridge Journal of Economics 25: 79–96.
Braudel, Fernand. 1979. Civilisation matérielle, économie et capitalisme XVe-XVIIIème siècle. 2. Les jeux de l’échange. Paris: Armand Colin.
———. 1985. La dynamique du capitalisme. Paris: Champs Flammarion.
Chick, Victoria. 1991. Macroeconomics After Keynes: A Reconsideration of the General Theory. Cambridge: First MIT Press Edition.
Coase, R.H. 1994. Essays on Economics and Economists. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Dávila-Fernández, Marwiland, and José Oreiro. 2016. Piketty in the Light of Pasinetti and Foley: Income Distribution, Economic Growth and Financial Fragility, Revista de Economia Política 36: 667–683, São Paolo.
Dumont, Louis. 1985. Homo aequalis. Genèse et épanouissement de l’idéologie économique. Paris: NRF, Editions Gallimard.
Felipe, Jesus, and J.S.L. McCombie. 2005. How Sound Are the Foundations of the Aggregate Production Function? Eastern Economic Journal 31 (3) (Summer): 467–488.
Harrod, Roy F. 1939. An Essay in Dynamic Theory. The Economic Journal 49: 14–33.
Herscovici, Alain. 2006a. O modelo de Harrod: natureza das expectativas de longo prazo, instabilidade e não-linearidade. Economia e Sociedade, Campinas, v. 15, n. 1 (26), p., jan./abr.
———. 2006b. Keynes e a teoria dos fundos de emprestimos:os fundamentos da critica de Keynes a economia (neo) clássica (Keynes and the loanable funds theory: the foundations of neoclassical economy critic), Análise Econômica, Ano 24, n. 46, setembro 2006, Faculdade de Ciências Econômicas, UFRGS, Porto Alegre.
Kaldor, Nicholas. 1955–1956. Alternative Theories of Distribution. The Review of Economic Studies 23 (2): 83–100.
Keynes, John Maynard. 2009. The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money. New York: Classic Books America.
Kregel, J. 1980. Markets and institutions as features of a capitalistic production system. Journal of Post-keynesian Economics/Fall III (1): 32–49.
Lakatos, Imre. 1978. The Methodology of Scientific Research Programs. Philosophical Papers Volume I. Edited by John Worral and Gregory Currie. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Mauss, Marcel. 1923–1924. Essai sur le don. l’année sociologique 1: 30–186.
Orléan, André. 2011. L’empire de la valeur. Refonder l’Économie. Paris: Éditions du Seuil.
Pasinetti, Luigi L. 1962. Rate of Profit and Income Distribution in Relation to the Rate of Economic Growth. The Review of Economic Studies 29 (4) (October): 267–279.
———. 1997. The Marginal Efficiency of Investment. In A “Second Edition” of the General Theory-Vol. 1, ed. G.C. Harcourt and P.A. Riach, 198–218. London: Routledge.
Polanyi, Karl. 1983. La Grande Transformation. Aux origines politiques et économiques de notre temps. Paris: Editions Gallimard.
Ricardo, David. 1821. On the Principles of Political Economy and Taxation, 3rd ed. Ontario: Batoche Book 2001.
Thomas, Piketty. 2014. Capital in the Twenty First Century. Cambridge, MA and London: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.
———. 2013. Le capital au XXIème siècle. Paris: Editions du Seuil.
Solow, R. 1956. A Contribution to the Theory of Economic Growth. Quarterly Journal of Economics 70: 65–94.
———. 2014. Everything You Need to Know About ‘Capital in the Twenty-First Century’. http://www.newrepublic.com/article/117429/capital-twenty-first-century-thomaspikettyreviewed. Accessed 14 December 2015.
Vercelli, Alessandro. 1991. Methodological Foundations of Macroeconomics: Keynes and Lucas. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2019 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Herscovici, A. (2019). The Problem of the Empirical Data: Capital in the Twenty-First Century?. In: Essays on the Historicity of Capital. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-14838-6_8
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-14838-6_8
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-14837-9
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-14838-6
eBook Packages: Economics and FinanceEconomics and Finance (R0)