A Brief History of Economics in a Scientific-Ethical Framework

A glance at the history of economic thought shows that economics has grown in an ethical formwork. For long time it was considered as a branch of practical sciences. However due to many reasons including the considerable advances in natural science and the prevalence of empirical methods and positivistic methodologies in economic science economics gradually departed from ethical concerns. The first part of this article briefly reviews the link between economics and moral philosophy prior to Adam Smith including the Aristotle’s tradition in which economics was part of a wider study subject that included ethics and politics as well. This classification was valid throughout the middles ages. The second part of article discuses economics from Adam smith’s perspective. Although most of experts hold that the modern economics was founded by Smith and his seminal book” The Wealth of Nations” however, in fact this is the interpretation that the advocates of positive economics make for Smiths views whom they believe to be the founder of modern economics. Anyhow a closer and deeper look into Smith’s works suggests that his approach to economics was far different from the present definitions of economics.The third part of article, covering the period after Smith to 1900, reviews the views of Malthus, Ricardo, Stuart Mill, Marshal etc. shows that although they have largely contributed to the technical parts of economics but most of them considered economics as a science that serves ethical ends.