Journal of Political Economy Vol. 28 No. 4 1920
An Appraisal of Carver's Economics
Abstract
Prof essor Carver' is a welcome addition to the steadily increasing number of economic students who are dissatisfied with the neoclassical limitations that have been imposed upon economic theory. He has joined the "welfare crowd," his volume being dedicated " to all those who care to see their country grow great and strong. " Viewing with high scorn the common doctrine that the economist should concern himself only with the means of satisfying desires, without considering the possible detrimental effects to the race, he accordingly deplores the lack of attention that has been given to consumption by writers on political economy and remarks that "a few students are beginning to discover that consumption is more important than production, exchange and distribution-possibly more important than all three combined" (p. ii). "Consumption reacts powerfully upon all other departments, particularly upon distribution" (p. 455). This emphasis upon consumption and upon the concept of welfare meets with the reviewer's unqualified endorsement. I have always failed to understand why economists should lay such emphasis upon "long-run" considerations and then persist in counting all things as wealth so long as they momentarily satisfy individual cravings, regardless of their ultimate economic and social consequences. The narrow definition which makes whiskey wealth because it has utility has not tended to commend economic analysis to the favorable consideration of those whose interests lie in the field of public welfare. There could, of course, be little objection to the classical definition of wealth if the economist were satisfied to admit at the conclusion of his analysis that it had little bearing on problems of long-run economic development or on matters of practical statesmanship. But this he is seldom content to do. He fancies that, like Adam Smith, he is really concerned
- DOI
- 10.1086/253263
- Volume
- 28
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 322-331
- Language
- en
- Sources
- semanticscholar openalex crossref