Who is Philip Wicksteed?

F.A. Hayek (1899–1992) was the most important representative of the “fourth generation” of the Austrian school of economics and the only one so far to receive the Nobel Prize. His many contributions are highlighted by Peter Klein. Hayek considered himself a socialist until he read Mises's ​Socialism, where Mises argued that prices and private property are a requirement of economic calculation. He attended Mises’s private seminar along with other top young economists and went on to build upon Mises’s monetary theory. He developed an explanation of business cycles brought on by bank credit expansion encouraging malinvestments in capital. The Who Is? podcast is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Soundcloud, and via RSS.

Jeffrey Herbener discusses the significant contributions of Frank Fetter (1863–1949) on the implications of the marginalist revolution. Fetter identified with not only the Austrian school but in particular the branch that developed Menger’s causal-realist approach to economics. Fetter’s major achievement was to reform the Classical theory of income distribution to bring it into line with subjective value theory. In doing so, he stressed the need for economic theory to realize the importance of capital and its place in industrial affairs. The Who Is? podcast is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Soundcloud, and via RSS.

A strong member of the “second generation of the Austrian school of economics,” Eugen von Böhm-Bawerk (1851–1914) and his works are discussed by Peter Klein. Böhm-Bawerk did much to extend and further develop Menger’s theories of value, price, capital, and production. Included in his work of the two volume Capital and Interest is a devastating critique of Marx’s exploitation theory. Böhm-Bawerk explained that far from being exploited, the workers are actually accommodated, being paid in advance of the produced goods being sold. In the second volume of Capital and Interest, Böhm-Bawerk explained the time consuming nature of production and how it relates to interest. Roundabout production methods are more productive but come at a cost of forgoing current consumption during the process of accumulating the capital. This became the basis for his time preference theory of interest as well as the foundations for the Austrian theory of the business cycle. Böhm-Bawerk also presented a clear example diminishing marginal utility and explained how real prices, as opposed to hypothetical equilibrium prices, are determined. The Who Is? podcast is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Soundcloud, and via RSS.

Jonathan Newman discusses the many contributions of the brilliant popularizer of sound economics, Henry Hazlitt (1894–1993). Best known for his book, Economics in One Lesson, Hazlitt stressed that a comprehensive view of of any event or policy is necessary to avoid missing longer term consequences. Hazlitt was a voice of reason in the mainstream press. He demolished Keynesianism, socialism, government interventionism, price controls, government welfare, fiat money, expansionary monetary policy, and all kinds of economic errors and wrongheaded policies. The Who Is? podcast is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Soundcloud, and via RSS.

In this episode, Guido Hülsmann, author of Mises’s biography The Last Knight of Liberalism, highlights the life and work of Ludwig von Mises (1881–1973), arguably the greatest economist of all time. Very early in his career, Mises was influenced by Carl Menger and Eugen von Böhm-Bawerk to turn away from the Historicist approach and to pursue studies in economic theory. Among Mises's many contributions, Hülsmann discusses the socialist calculation debate, Mises’s battle against inflation, and the argument that economics is part of a larger science called Praxelogy. Mises revolutionized the theory of money, developing a full explanation of money prices and the consequences of money production.

G.P. Manish highlights the life and work of Philip Wicksteed, a theologian and scholar from the late 19th and early 20th century. Though not a fan of the free market, Wicksteed made many contributions to Austrian price theory. Wicksteed recognized that economics is a branch of praxeology, studying human action and choices necessitated by scarcity. Wicksteed placed man—specifically not an all-knowing man, as was in fashion at the time—at the center of economic analysis, siding with Menger in the Marginalist Revolution. The Who Is? podcast is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Soundcloud, and via RSS.

The life and work of the 19th century economist and statesman, Claude-Frédéric Bastiat (1801–1850), are highlighted by Guido Hülsmann. Beginning his work in economics to fight against tariffs and to argue for free trade, Bastiat published The Law in 1850. His influence spread quickly as it was translated into many languages all over Europe. In it he argued that the whole point of law is to protect the private property of every member of society. Thanks to Bastiat, we have the brilliant illustration of the broken window fallacy from his essay “What Is Seen and What Is Not Seen.” To see destruction as a source of economic growth by increasing income to re-build, Bastiat argued, is to focus only what is immediately visible and missing the loss of pre-existing wealth. The Who Is? podcast is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Soundcloud, and via RSS.

Richard Cantillon (1680–1734) was perhaps the most important and influential economist of all time, though as Mark Thornton explains, few people have ever heard of him. Murray Rothbard called him the founding father of modern economics. Cantillon was the world’s first economic theorist, and in his treatise we find much of what we call economics today. He developed a scientific and positive methodology, performed thought experiments, and created the ceteris paribus assumption. Also in his work we find value theory, opportunity cost, price theory, and entrepreneurship theory. Mark Thornton describes in detail one of Cantillon’s greatest achievements: the specie flow mechanism. Supplemental readings for Cantillon: English translation of Cantillon’s An Essay on Economic Theory Chapter 12 of Rothbard’s An Austrian Perspetive on the History of Economic Thought, Volume I Richard Cantillon: Economist and Entrepreneur by Antoin Murphy The Who Is? podcast is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Soundcloud, and via RSS.

Lucas Engelhardt explains the many contributions of an early precursor to not only the Austrian school but to the whole of economic thought, Juan de Mariana of the 16th century Spanish scholastics. Mariana’s book On the King and the Royal Institution stressed the importance of remembering that kings are under a greater natural moral law and ought to be punished when they violate it. Mariana distinguished between a tyrant and a king by how the ruler viewed the property of his citizens. Regarding the exchange value of money, Mariana understood the value was determined by the supply and demand of money so that debasement of the currency led to rising prices. Engelhardt also explains Mariana’s understanding of subjective valuation. The Who Is? podcast is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Soundcloud, and via RSS.

Per Bylund explains the many contributions of Jean-Baptiste Say (1767–1832), a precursor to the Austrian school of economics. Today, Say is most well known for his “law of markets” which is now referred to simply as “Say’s Law.” Often misstated as “supply creates its own demand,” the law is that we produce and supply to the market in order that we may demand other goods in exchange. Production, therefore, is an indirect means to attain the goods and services we desire to meet our needs.  Say also made contributions in the theory of money, including how it emerges spontaneously, and why the commodity serving as a medium of exchange needs characteristics of durability, divisibility, and high value per unit, with the choice of commodity should be left to consumer preferences. Other highlights include his distinction between banks of deposit and banks of circulation.  The Who Is? podcast is available on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Soundcloud, and via RSS.