The goal of this book is to fill the gap in Rothbardian scholarship and present an intellectual biography that shows Rothbard’s evolution from a neoclassical graduate student to a pioneer in Austrian economics. Our thesis is twofold. First, Mises was correct: Man, Economy, and State represents “an epochal contribution” to praxeology. The mainline of Austrian economics runs from the seminal writings of Carl Menger through Böhm-Bawerk to Mises and Hayek and then to Rothbard. Second, the culmination of Rothbard’s efforts was the creation of a postwar theoretical edifice that rivaled both the neoclassical synthesis and the Chicago School and was distinctly different from neoclassical economics. Given these contributions, Rothbard is Mises’s most important successor, or heir.
Murray N. Rothbard: The Making of an Austrian Economist is written for everyone interested in Rothbard’s economic theory and Austrian economics in general. We hope it will serve as a useful complementary volume to Man, Economy, and State by elucidating Rothbard’s many contributions and the process by which he developed an integrated structure of economic theory using the praxeological method.
—From the introduction
Joseph Salerno is academic vice president of the Mises Institute, professor emeritus of economics at Pace University, and editor of the Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics.
With advances in the Austrian theory of the business cycle, Rothbard finally completed the monumental task of deducing the entire corpus of economic theory using the praxeological method.
In 1962, despite professional and institutional obstacles, Man, Economy, and State was finally published. With it, Rothbard greatly advanced the Austrian tradition and firmly positioned himself as Mises’s heir.
Murray Rothbard’s project drastically changed in mid-1953. Unable to rely on Mises’s sparse treatment of production theory, Rothbard adopted his old Marshallian approach, focusing on an individual firm that faced fixed prices and restricted investment decisions.
Patrick is and assistant teaching professor of economics at the University of Tampa and Murray N. Rothbard Research Fellow at the Mises Institute. He completed his PhD in the Department of Economics at George Mason University.
With advances in the Austrian theory of the business cycle, Rothbard finally completed the monumental task of deducing the entire corpus of economic theory using the praxeological method.
In 1962, despite professional and institutional obstacles, Man, Economy, and State was finally published. With it, Rothbard greatly advanced the Austrian tradition and firmly positioned himself as Mises’s heir.
