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Walras, Léon

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International Encyclopedia of Civil Society

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Best known as the founder of neoclassical microeconomics, Léon Walras was a promoter of the cooperative movement, which was a key element in his theory of general equilibrium. According to him, developing cooperatives is not a matter of social justice, which depends on the action of the government, but a question of efficiency. A national public ownership of land, natural resources, or other natural monopolies is fairer than taxation as a way to generate resources for the government to pursue social justice.

Basic Biographical Information

Born on December 16, 1834, in Evreux, France, Marie Esprit Léon Walras was the son of an economist, Auguste Walras. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in 1851 and of science in 1853 (Lycée of Douai) and entered the Ecole des Minesin Paris 1 year later. He dropped his engineering degree and then tried literature and art criticism unsuccessfully. His father suggested he should set up a career as a publicist on socioeconomic matters. After...

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References

  • Schumpeter, J. (2006). History of economic analysis. London: Routledge. Original/first edition: Schumpeter, J. (1954). History of economic analysis. London: Allen & Unwin.

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  • Walras, L. (1898). Etudes d’économie politique appliquée. Lausanne, F. Rouge éditeur. English edition: Walras, L. (2010). Studies in applied economics (Vol. 2, J. van Daal & D. A. Walker, Trans.). London: Routledge.

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Further Reading

  • Walras, L. (1965). Correspondence of Léon Walras and related papers (Vol. 3, W. Jaffé, Ed.). Amsterdam: North Holland.

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  • Wood, J. C. (Ed.). (1993). Léon Walras, critical assessments. London: Routledge.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. INRAE, SMART, Institut Agro, Angers, France

    Damien Rousselière

Authors
  1. Damien Rousselière
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Correspondence to Damien Rousselière .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

    Regina A. List

  2. Hertie School of Governance, Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    Helmut K. Anheier

  3. Schar school, George Mason University, ARLINGTON, VI, USA

    Stefan Toepler

Section Editor information

  1. Hamburg, Germany

    Regina A. List

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Rousselière, D. (2023). Walras, Léon. In: List, R.A., Anheier, H.K., Toepler, S. (eds) International Encyclopedia of Civil Society. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-99675-2_670-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-99675-2_670-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-99675-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-99675-2

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