Economists who speak of uncertainty tend to attribute it to the objective, external, world, which they sometimes describe as being uncertain. However plausible this way of speaking about uncertainty, it also causes problems. This essay explore some of these problems, which have to do with what it means to attribute uncertainty to the state of the world, particularly to bring in the flow of 'historical' time. The essay advances the idea that uncertainty be understood not as an intrinsic attribute of the flow of time, but in connection with a specific moment in human history and the situation in which individuals find themselves at that moment. The essay focuses attention on the status of the subject of agent in economics, and the conditions under which knowing and acting are possible. Special emphasis is placed on the implications for knowing and acting on the distinction between traditional and modern society.
