Economic Theory in Retrospect

By Mark Blaug,

Book cover of Economic Theory in Retrospect

Book description

This is a history of economic thought from Adam Smith to John Maynard Keynes - but it is a history with a difference. Firstly, it is a history of economic theory, not of economic doctrines, that is, it is consistently focused on theoretical analysis, undiluted by entertaining historical digressions or…

Shepherd is reader supported. When you buy books, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Why read it?

2 authors picked Economic Theory in Retrospect as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Mark Blaug escaped the Netherlands, just in time before the Nazis marched in, went to New York University, and eventually wrote this colossal overview of the entire body of the economics literature. 

He is capable of ordering different formal approaches to the subject matter in plain English, what an achievement.

The corrective for Schumpeter. How an orthodox post-1945 American economist interprets the historical greats of economic thought.

For those who know some economics already, it translates into a language they can understand. Blaug was a very distinguished scholar himself, an independent thinker, a very clear writer.

If this is not always what the greats really meant, it shows what modern analytical economics is losing and has lost by neglecting its past. 

From Avner's list on the history of economic thought.

Want books like Economic Theory in Retrospect?

Our community of 10,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like Economic Theory in Retrospect.

Browse books like Economic Theory in Retrospect

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in microeconomics, Keynes, and economics?

10,000+ authors have recommended their favorite books and what they love about them. Browse their picks for the best books about microeconomics, Keynes, and economics.

Microeconomics Explore 40 books about microeconomics
Keynes Explore 13 books about Keynes
Economics Explore 380 books about economics