The received idea is that he could not miss the science of modernity. But if we investigate what can be considered as the economic thought of Rousseau, we must be distinguish two different lines of thought: one which has to do with the division of labour (to be mostly found in Emile and the...

Ricardo's model of capital accumulation is studied on the basis of his distinction between natural and accidental causes that are associated with permanent and temporary effects. The consequence is that, from the two contemporary interpretations of this model: theses of Hollander and Peach, only...

This article compares the problems arising in the course of the editing of the Interwar Papers and Correspondence (1919-1939) of Roy Harrod and of the materials relating to the preparation (1934-1937) of Gottfried Haberler's inquiry on Prosperity and Depression led for the League of Nations. In...

This article contributes to the explanation of the methodological differences between Cournot and Walras when these authors apply mathematics to economics. Our article explains the reasons behind Cournot’s refusal when Walras required him to write an article, which advocates the application of...

Character is commonly recognised as a crucial notion in Alfred Marshall’s thought, and more broadly in Victorian thought. However, this concept is never intrinsically defined. This paper offers an intellectual reconstruction of the notion of character in Marshall’s thought. While not denying...

The population matter in Jean-Baptiste Say’s work is not a subject traditionally covered by secondary literature. The limited existing works, which consist of general studies on the question, only refer to some theoretical elements of Say’s theory. No approach actually examines how Say’s...

Bodin’s monetary writings are mainly centred on the relationship between currencies and sovereignty. He aims at designing a monetary system that would be forgery, debasement and degradation proof. Having explained his conception of money and false money, we expose the way Bodin seeks to...

This paper proposes a reassessment of the well-known opposition between Menger and Böhm-Bawerk, generally presented as an opposition between a "subjectivist" view and a "materialist" view on capital and production. Using textual evidence, we argue that Böhm- Bawerk was a quasi-dogmatic...

Rousseau shares with neo-classical theory a characterization of the economic agent, as a producer, based on the figure of Robinson. But whereas neo-classical economy expresses, through Robinson, the rational behavior of any economic agent, Rousseau considers on the contrary that the individual...

In the Rousseauist tradition, the idea of sovereignty generally refers to the sovereignty of the body politic. Rousseau never yields nevertheless to the holist temptation. Individual is at the core of his system. The aim of this paper is to question the idea of moral autonomy, in particular in...