The social encyclical Rerum Novarum closely links the question of poverty with that of property, and invokes Thomas Aquinas. But on closer examination, the reasoning developed in favour of property departs from the scholastic thinker, since it maintains more affinities with the liberal tradition...

The Italian economist Enrico Barone (1859- 1924) is best known for his contributions to marginal productivity theory and the socialist planning debate. This paper analyzes Barone’s contributions to the theory of perfect competition which are largely ignored in the secondary literature. It...

Rousseau paradoxically associates the poverty in market societies with the development of bad wealth. As he becomes addicted to the desire of infinite wealth, the bad rich person can neither identify with the poor person’s misfortune nor feel pity for his suffering. Poverty does not result...