Essays on economics and economists

Includes 15 previously published papers and an original preface.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

1. The Institutional Structure of Production -- 2. How Should Economists Choose? -- 3. Economics and Contiguous Disciplines -- 4. Economists and Public Policy -- 5. The Market for Goods and the Market for Ideas -- 6. The Wealth of Nations -- 7. Adam Smith's View of Man -- 8. Alfred Marshall's Mother and Father -- 9. Alfred Marshall's Family and Ancestry -- 10. The Appointment of Pigou as Marshall's Successor -- 11. Marshall on Method -- 12. Arnold Plant -- 13. Duncan Black -- 14. George J. Stigler -- 15. Economics at LSE in the 1930s: A Personal View.

"One of the most influential economists of this century, R. H. Coase has revolutionized the way economists and legal scholars understand the push-and-pull of the marketplace. Recipient of the 1991 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for his seminal work on industrial organization, Coase, in this book, offers a broad view of economics by exploring the lives and work of major figures in classical and neoclassical economic theory." "In these fifteen essays on the history and philosophy of economics, Coase reflects on some of the most fundamental concerns of economists over the past two centuries: How do economists decide what questions to address and how to choose their theories? How do they tackle the problems of the economic system and give advice on public policy? In his distinctive, lucid style, Coase examines economic theory from Adam Smith to George J. Stigler and offers his unique perspective on the future of the field." "Coase contends that economists can still learn from Smith's work, but raises the important question of what economists have been doing since Smith's day. Turning to the work of another giant of economics, Alfred Marshall, Coase offers four biographical essays on the life of this "great economist and flawed human being."" "There are also remembrances of such economists as Arnold Plant, Coase's teacher and mentor; Duncan Black, a colleague at the Dundee School of Economics and a long-time close friend; and George J. Stigler, friend and colleague at the University of Chicago. Completing the volume is Coase's personal account of economics at the London School of Economics in the 1930s, where he was involved with some of the most exciting work in the field." "Essays on Economics and Economists is a fitting complement to The Firm, the Market, and the Law, in which Coase developed his powerful theory of transaction costs. While Coase's earlier book explored the theoretical foundations of economics, this volume takes the long view of the enterprise, exploring the way economists have historically conducted their research and how they should proceed in the future."--BOOK JACKET.