An economy based on mutual assistance
The reissue of a classic of economic theory provides the chance to review market and production
The market as the expression of “mutual assistance” in meeting “reciprocal needs”, with business transactions seen as relationships rather than conflicts and “public happiness” as the end goal of a (good) economy. An economy attentive to people is, basically, a civil economy. Current themes that we find – and rediscover – in an economic debate from a few centuries ago, written by eminent forerunner Antonio Genovesi, whose Lezioni di economia civile (Lessons in civil economy) have recently been reissued.
Genovesi, an eclectic philosopher from Naples, can rightly be considered one of the founders of modern economics. Forgotten by too many and for too long, Genovesi was the first, in Europe, to hold a professorship in economics (established in Naples in 1754) and his lessons have shaped this work (so much so that it is subdivided into two parts, i.e. first and second semesters).
The economy is thus scrutinised and explained from a viewpoint similar, but not exactly alike, to that of pre-eminently classic economic thought such as that of Adam Smith, who wrote his The wealth of nations around the same time. The similarity lies in Genovesi sharing with Smith the same critical views of the feudal world and the conviction that the market should contribute to building a freer and more egalitarian world. Their opinions, however, differ in that while the Scottish thinker holds a pessimistic view of humanity, which he saw as moulded by individual self-interest (the common good as entrusted to the market’s “invisible hand”), the Neapolitan scholar was persuaded that an individual is determined by the balance of two forces: self-interest and social support – in essence, Genovesi believed that an individual is shaped by relationships conducive to reciprocity. In other words, Smith only saw the selfish side of humanity while Genovesi saw its relational one.
Lessons are based on this premise, and deal not only with market, exchanges, profits, prices and much more, but also expand to include civil life, its rules, its civil virtues, up to the definition of ”common goods” as the foundation of society, and something for which the economy must strive.
The reissue of Lessons, which includes a comprehensive essay by Luigino Bruni and Stefano Zamagni, allows us to appreciate, in our own era, an economic vision conceived in the 18th century yet even more relevant today. In the first pages, Genovesi writes how “in an educated and polite society, studies in civil economics are useful to all social classes”. Genovesi’s work is superb, a book to be read and reread knowing that we can all learn from him, which is indeed a great opportunity.
Lezioni di economia civile (Lessons in civil economy)
Antonio Genovesi
Vita e Pensiero, 2023
The reissue of a classic of economic theory provides the chance to review market and production
The market as the expression of “mutual assistance” in meeting “reciprocal needs”, with business transactions seen as relationships rather than conflicts and “public happiness” as the end goal of a (good) economy. An economy attentive to people is, basically, a civil economy. Current themes that we find – and rediscover – in an economic debate from a few centuries ago, written by eminent forerunner Antonio Genovesi, whose Lezioni di economia civile (Lessons in civil economy) have recently been reissued.
Genovesi, an eclectic philosopher from Naples, can rightly be considered one of the founders of modern economics. Forgotten by too many and for too long, Genovesi was the first, in Europe, to hold a professorship in economics (established in Naples in 1754) and his lessons have shaped this work (so much so that it is subdivided into two parts, i.e. first and second semesters).
The economy is thus scrutinised and explained from a viewpoint similar, but not exactly alike, to that of pre-eminently classic economic thought such as that of Adam Smith, who wrote his The wealth of nations around the same time. The similarity lies in Genovesi sharing with Smith the same critical views of the feudal world and the conviction that the market should contribute to building a freer and more egalitarian world. Their opinions, however, differ in that while the Scottish thinker holds a pessimistic view of humanity, which he saw as moulded by individual self-interest (the common good as entrusted to the market’s “invisible hand”), the Neapolitan scholar was persuaded that an individual is determined by the balance of two forces: self-interest and social support – in essence, Genovesi believed that an individual is shaped by relationships conducive to reciprocity. In other words, Smith only saw the selfish side of humanity while Genovesi saw its relational one.
Lessons are based on this premise, and deal not only with market, exchanges, profits, prices and much more, but also expand to include civil life, its rules, its civil virtues, up to the definition of ”common goods” as the foundation of society, and something for which the economy must strive.
The reissue of Lessons, which includes a comprehensive essay by Luigino Bruni and Stefano Zamagni, allows us to appreciate, in our own era, an economic vision conceived in the 18th century yet even more relevant today. In the first pages, Genovesi writes how “in an educated and polite society, studies in civil economics are useful to all social classes”. Genovesi’s work is superb, a book to be read and reread knowing that we can all learn from him, which is indeed a great opportunity.
Lezioni di economia civile (Lessons in civil economy)
Antonio Genovesi
Vita e Pensiero, 2023