Chapter Outline

1. Economics: Its Nature and Its Uses

Economics is a science that provides us with true laws of cause and effect. It tells us that if we know A is true, then we conclude that B must also be true. Even though the logical implication is necessarily true (if our deductions are free of error), the conclusion B is only true when the initial assumption A is satisfied.

A  |  B  |  C  |  D  |  E
F  |  G  |  H  |  I  |  J
K  |  L  |  M  |  N  |  O
P  |  Q  |  R  |  S  |  T
U  |  V  |  W  |  Z

A

Apriorism, 1, 9

Robert Murphy’s Study Guide to Man, Economy, and State with Power and Market makes Rothbard’s great treatise accessible not only to students but to anyone who wants to learn economics from the ground up. It is supremely well organized, with chapter summaries, notes on unique contributions, technical explanations, and study questions. It is intended for personal study or for use by a reading group.

STUDY GUIDE

TO

A TREATISE ON ECONOMICS

SCHOLAR’S EDITION

LUDWIG VON MISES

ROBERT P. MURPHY
& AMADEUS GABRIEL

Copyright © 2008 by Ludwig von Mises Institute

All rights reserved. Written permission must be secured from the publisher to use or reproduce any part of this book, except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles.

Published by the Ludwig von Mises Institute

518 West Magnolia Avenue, Auburn, Alabama 36832-4501

mises.org

ISBN: 978-1-933550-38-1

Murray Rothbard’s massive Man, Economy, and State with Power and Market is the best single book for a fairly complete exposition of the modern Austro-libertarian worldview. Although Rothbard’s prose is characteristically crystal clear, even so the book’s daunting size intimidated many newcomers, leading to the regrettable situation where many self-identified Austrians hadn’t read one of the most important books in the tradition. To address this grave condition, the Ludwig von Mises Institute commissioned me to write a study guide for MES.

Part One—Human Action

Chapter Summary

1. PURPOSEFUL ACTION AND ANIMAL REACTION

Human action is purposeful behavior. The distinguishing feature of action is that the observer imputes a goal to the actor. Action is different from purely reflexive behavior. A man may flinch after a loud noise. This is not necessarily action in the Misesian sense.

Chapter Summary

1. PRAXEOLOGY AND HISTORY

Praxeology and history are the two main branches of the sciences of human action. History is the collection and systematic arrangement of all data of experience concerning human action. The natural sciences too deal with past events, but their successful use of induction relies on the experience of past experiments. In contrast, in the sciences of human action there can be no controlled experiment, and hence a different method is needed.

Chapter Summary

1. THE REVOLT AGAINST REASON

Reason is the primary tool for acting man. The modern revolt against reason was not due to exaggerated claims by the rationalist philosophers. What really happened was that the socialist opponents of the classical economists could not defeat their arguments, and so instead challenged reason itself. Once the floodgates had been opened in this sphere, nihilism and skepticism spilled over into other branches of thought.