Overton H. Taylor described his book, A History of Economic Thought: Social Ideals and Economic Theories from Quesnay to Keynes (McGraw-Hill, 1960), as “an outgrowth from, or reduction to book form of, a part of the course of lectures, covering the same ground, which I have given annually for many years at Harvard University.” This post provides the graduate course outline for the first semester and final examinations for both semesters of his course for the 1955-56 academic year. It is something of a mystery that no syllabus with reading assignments for the second semester of the course can be found in the Harvard archive’s collection of course syllabi (also not for the previous year either). Perhaps the second semester was structured according to the interests of the students in the course and Taylor simply announced reading assignments as they went along. At least the final examination questions from June 1956 give some indication of the material covered (Marx, Austrian value theory, neo-classical economics in general and Marshall in particular, Veblen…but not Keynes).
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Earlier syllabi and exams by Taylor in the history of economics have been posted earlier:
Syllabus. Economics 115 (Fall Term, 1948-49). Economics and Political Ideas in Modern Times.
Final Exam. Economics 115 (Fall Term, 1948-49). Economics and Political Ideas in Modern Times.
Syllabus and Final Exam. Economics 115 (Spring Term, 1947-48). Economics and Political Ideas in Modern Times.
A much earlier version of the material for a one semester course:
Syllabus. Economics 1b (Spring Term, 1940-41). The Intellectual Background of Economic Thought.
Final Exam. Economics 1b (Spring Term, 1940-41). The Intellectual Background of Economic Thought.
Greater emphasis on economic theory was given in his graduate course:
Syllabus. Economics 205a (Fall Term, 1948-49). Main Currents of Thought in Economics and Related Studies over Recent Centuries.
In the Preface to his 1960 book Taylor described his purpose in writing as follows:
Perhaps I have a desire to be a ‘missionary’ in both directions–to convert as many noneconomist or lay readers as I can into interested students of economic theory and its history, and to convert more fellow-economists into interested students, also, of the diverse, general views or perspectives on all human affairs which formerly concerned all philosophical political economists.
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HARVARD UNIVERSITY
Department of Economics
Fall Term, 1955-56
Economics 205
History of Economic Theory
[O. H. Taylor]
I. Sept. 26-30. Introduction.
Reading due Sept. 30. (1) J. A. Schumpeter, History of Economic Analysis, Part I, (45 pp.). (2) Review of the Schumpeter History, by O. H. Taylor, in (Harvard) Review of Economics and Statistics, Feb. 1955. (3) Essay, “Philosophies and Economic Theories in Modern Occidental Culture,” by O. H. Taylor in volume, Ideological Differences and World Order, ed. by F. C. S. Northrup. (Also available in O. H. Taylor essays, Economics and Liberalism).
Mon., Sept. 26. Introductory lecture: Aims, scope, and plan of course. Reasons for studying history of economic thought. Interrelations of the history of our “science”, history of popular politico-economic thought, and general backgrounds of economic, social, political, and intellectual history.
Wed., Sept. 28. Second Lecture: A preliminary survey of our subject matter and its-over-all pattern; characters of main developments in antiquity, the middle ages, early-modern times (“mercantilism”), the eighteenth century, classical political economy and its critics, socialism and Marxism, the historical schools, neo-classical systems, and 20th century economics.
Fri., Sept. 30. Class Discussion (no lecture), chiefly on Schumpeter History, Part I.
II. Oct. 3-7. Antiquity—Plato and Aristotle and Stoicism, Roman Law, and Early Christianity.
Reading due Oct. 7. (1) G. H. Sabine, History of Political Theory, first 6 chapters. (2) Schumpeter, History, Part II, Ch. 1.
Mon., Oct. 3. Lecture: Ancient Athenian life and thought, and Plato’s philosophy, politics, and economics.
Wed., Oct. 5. Lecture: Aristotle’s philosophy, politics, and economics; and effects on later economics, that of Stoicism, Roman Law, and early Christianity.
Fri., Oct. 7. Class discussion.
III. Oct. 10-14. The Middle Ages—Scholastic Thought—Aquinas.
Reading due Oct. 14. (1) Sabine, History of Political Theory, Ch. 13 (“Universitas Hominum”: St. Thomas and Dante). (2) Schumpeter, History of Economic Analysis, Part II, Ch. 2, 1st 5 sections.
Mon., Oct. 10. Lecture: Mediaeval Europe, its life and thought; scholastic philosophy and economics; St. Thomas Aquinas.
Wed., Oct. 12. Holiday.
Fri., Oct. 14. Discussion.
IV. Oct. 17-21. Early Modern Europe—Growth of capitalism, national states, the modern (as opposed to mediaeval) intellectual climate, and the ideas and practices of political absolutism and “mercantilism”. (2) The general and political philosophy of Hobbes.
Reading due Oct. 21: (1) Schumpeter, History, Part II, Ch. 2, Secs. 6, 7; and Chs. 3, 4. (2) Hobbes, Leviathan, Chs. 1-6 incl., and 13, 14, 15, 17, 21, 24.
Mon., Oct. 17. Lecture: From Mediaevalism to modernity; Evolution of the main elements of modern-western civilization, in the England and Western Europe of the 16th and 17th centuries.
Wed., Oct. 19. Lecture: The general and political philosophy of Hobbes, and its relation to “mercantilist” economic thought and policy.
Fri., Oct. 21. Discussion.
V. Oct. 24-28. Economic Analysis in the Age of “Mercantilism.”
Reading due Oct. 28: (1) Schumpeter, History, Part II, chs. 5, 6, and 7. (2) Look at, read in, “sample,” some of following: Sir T. Mun, England’s Treasure by Foreign Trade; Sir J. Child, A New Discourse on Trade; J. Locke, Considerations on Lowering Interest by Law and Raising the Value of Money; Sir D. North, Discourses on Trade; Sir W. Petty, Economic Writings (Hull, Editor, vol. 1, especially Editor Hull’s introduction and pp. 43-49, 74-77, 89-91, 105-114).
Mon., Oct. 24. Lecture: “Mercantilism” and the 17th century beginnings of modern economic science.
Wed., Oct. 26. Lecture: The transition from “mercantilist” to 18th century “liberal” thought in economics.
Fri., Oct. 28. Discussion.
VI. Oct. 31-Nov. 4. Liberalism, Locke, and the 18th Century Enlightenment.
Reading due Nov. 4: (1) O. H. Taylor essays, “Economics and Ideas of Natural Law,” Quarterly Journal of Economics, Vol. 44, pp. 1 ff, and 205 ff. (also available in O. H. Taylor, Economics and Liberalism). (2) Review Schumpeter, History, Part II, Ch. II, Secs. 5, 6, 7. (3) J. Locke, Second Treatise on Civil Government, Chs. 2-9 incl.
Mon., Oct. 31. Lecture: History of ethical-juristic and natural-scientific “natural law” ideas, and early-modern liberalism; Grotius and others.
Wed., Nov. 2. Lecture: Newton, Locke, and the 18th century’s philosophic vision of the “natural order.”
Fri., Nov. 4. Discussion.
VII. Nov. 7-11. The Philosophy and Economics of the Physiocrats.
Reading due Nov. 11: (1) G. H. Sabine, History of Political Theory, Ch. 27 (“France: the Decadence of Natural Law.”) (2) Review, O. H. Taylor Essays, “Economics and Ideas of Natural Law,” and Schumpeter, History, Part II, Ch. IV.
Mon., Nov. 7. Lecture: The Physiocrats.
Wed., Nov. 9. Lecture: The Physiocrats (continued).
Fri., Nov. 11. Discussion.
VIII. Nov. 14-18. Adam Smith I. His forerunners in moral philosophy (Shaftesbury, Hutcheson, Hume), and his Theory of Moral Sentiments; and the relation of this material to the Wealth of Nations.
Reading due Nov. 17: Selby-Bigge, British Moralists, Selection from Smith’s Theory of Moral Sentiments.
Mon., Nov. 14. Lecture: The psychology and ethics, and philosophy of “the natural order,” of the 18th century Scottish “sentimental” moralists.
Wed., Nov. 16. Lecture: Adam Smith’s philosophy, psychology and ethics, and economics.
IX. Nov. 21-25. Adam Smith II. Economics.
Reading due Nov. 25: Wealth of Nations, Book I, first 7 chapters.
Mon., Nov. 21. Lecture: Adam Smith’s Inquiry into The Wealth of Nations (scope and nature of the book, etc.); and his theory of production, economic progress, “the system of natural liberty,” and “natural” prices, wages, profits, and rents.
Wed., Nov. 23, Lecture: Smith on capital, money, international trade, and other topics.
Fri., Nov. 25. Discussion.
X. Nov. 28-Dec. 2. Utilitarian Liberalism, Benthamism, and Classical (Ricardian) Political Economy.
Reading due Dec. 2: (1) G. H. Sabine, History of Political Theory, Chapter “Liberalism.” (2) Schumpeter, History of Economic Analysis, Part III, first 3 chapters. (3) Selby-Bigge, British Moralists, Selection from Bentham’s Introduction to Principles of Morals and Legislation. (4) J. Bentham, Rationale of Reward, Part II.
Mon., Nov. 28. Lecture: Liberal thought in the “natural law” and “utilitarian” versions; Benthamism; and the relation of this wider system of thought to “classical” economics.
Wed., Nov. 30. Lecture: Benthamism and classical economics, concluded.
Fri., Dec. 2. Discussion.
XI. Dec. 5-9. Malthus and Ricardo.
Reading due Dec. 9: (1) Schumpeter, History, Part III, Chs. 4, 5. (2) Ricardo, Principles, Chs. 1-6.
Mon., Dec. 5. Lecture: The Malthusian population principle, its ideological and scientific backgrounds and bearings, and its place in “classical” economics. (2) Malthus vs. Ricardo on other questions in economics.
Wed., Dec. 7. Lecture: Ricardo and his fundamental doctrines.
Fri., Dec. 9. Discussion.
XII. Dec. 12-16. Contemporary Criticisms of Classical Economics, and Rival Currents of Thought in the Same Epoch.
Reading due Dec. 16: (1) T. Carlyle, Past and Present, parts I and III. (2) J. Ruskin, Unto This Last. (3) A. Comte, Positive Philosophy, tr., Harriet Martineau, Introduction and Ch. 1 and Book VI, ch. 1.
Mon. Dec. 12. Lecture: Old and new currents and cross-currents of thought in this period. Advances in economic analysis in other quarters apart from the “classical” one. Contemporary Ideologies and “Lay” criticisms—Romantic, Positivistic, and “Reactionary” and “Radical.”
Wed., Dec. 14. Lecture: (1) Romantic-Conservative Thought in the Period vs. the Utilitarian-Liberal and Classical-Economic viewpoints. (2) Positivism and Comtism vs. liberalism and economics.
Fri., Dec. 16. Discussion.
Reading Period:
J. S. Mill, Principles of Political Economy
Book I—Chs. 3, 4, 5, 10, 11, 12
Book III—Chs. 1-4 incl., and 11, 15, 16
Book III [sic]
Source: Harvard University Archives. Syllabi, course outlines and reading lists in economics, 1895-2003. Box 6, Folder “Economics, 1955-1956 (1 of 2) and (2 of 2)”.
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1955-56
HARVARD UNIVERSITY
ECONOMICS 205
[Mid-year exam, January 1956]
Write half-hour essays on six (6) of the following:
- (a) Summarize, and discuss, the main ideas on “economic” (?) subjects that appear in Plato’s Republic. (b) With what tenets of Plato’s philosophy were those ideas connected? Explain these connections. (c) Do you think that modern economics presupposes other, very un-Platonic views in philosophy? Explain and defend your answer to (c).
- (a) What principal achievements in economic analysis does Schumpeter credit to the mediaeval scholastic doctors? (b) How, if at all, were their contributions affected (1) in Schumpeter’s view and (2) in your own view, by Scholastic doctrines in philosophy and ethics?
- Try to say as concisely and fully as you can, what seem to you the most important things to be said about “mercantilism” as a cluster of economic ideas and policies.
- (a) Who were the “econometricians” who are referred to as such in the title of Schumpeter’s chapter “The Econometricians and Turgot”? Identify as many of them as you can, giving names, approximate dates, and when possible, titles of their best-known writings. Then (b) characterize, a little more fully, the work, ideas, and contributions of one important member of that group.
- Explain and discuss either (a) the nature and significance of Quesnay’s tableau economique, (b) the Physiocratic philosophy of “the natural order”; or (c) the assumptions and reasoning behind the Physiocratic doctrines leading to identification of the land-rent-income of the proprietary class, with the entire national produit net, and to the views about taxation and other matters based upon that.
- “Adam Smith’s economic liberalism resulted logically, not from his ideas in economic theory only, but jointly from those and his fundamental views in philosophy, ethics, psychology, and sociology.” What main Smithian ideas, in each of those fields, in your view, played what parts in the full Smithian argument for economic liberalism?
- How do you explain both (1) the very high estimate, by Ricardo’s admirers in England, of the value of his contributions to economic science, and (2) Schumpeter’s rather low estimate of the same? Finally, what kind of an estimate would you offer as your own, and how would you defend it?
- Explain, and discuss critically, what you think J. S. Mill meant to assert, in his dictum about the laws of economic production vs. those of distribution—the dependence of the latter but not of the former on human institutions.
Source: Harvard University Archives. Harvard University. Final Examinations, 1853-2001. Box 23. Papers Printed for Final Examinations. History, History of Religions, …, Economics, …, Naval Science, Air Science (January, 1956).
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1955-56
HARVARD UNIVERSITY
ECONOMICS 205
[Final exam, June 1956]
Write one-hour essays on three (3) of the following subjects:
- A comparative discussion of the theories of economic development of Ricardo, Marx and Schumpeter.
- A comparative discussion of the Ricardian, Austrian, and Marshallian theories of the foundations and adjustment (into equilibrium) of the values and prices of different goods in a competitive economy.
- Your own views and arguments as to whether and how far the body of “marginal analysis” worked out in “neo-classical” economics was (1) a great advance in giving economics the precision and rigor of aa real science; or (2) a sad decline into a deadly-dull, unrealistic, and unimportant kind of theorizing, preoccupied with trivialities.
- Your own “sorting out,” in Veblen’s thought, of what you regard as his valid insights, and his to-be-rejected notions, (a) as a critic of traditional economic theory, and (b) as a critic of capitalism or the business culture.
Source: Harvard University Archives. Harvard University. Final Examinations, 1853-2001. Box 24. Papers Printed for Final Examinations. History, History of Religions, …, Economics, …, Naval Science, Air Science (June, 1956).
Image Source: Harvard Class Album 1952.
