GECO
5900

The Economics of Socialism from J.S. Mill to Joseph Stiglitz

New School for Social Research: Economics

Liberal Arts
Undergraduate Course
Graduate Course
Degree Students (with Restrictions)
The Economics of Socialism
Spring 2024
Taught By: Gary Mongiovi
Section: A

CRN: 14457

Credits: 3

This course will survey the theoretical approaches that economists have applied to the analysis of socialism from the early 19th century to the present. Systematic analytical discussions of socialism, variously defined, emerged close on the heels of the systematic accounts, by Smith and Ricardo, of how market economies function. Among the themes examined in the literature on socialism were the degree to which market outcomes are just, whether there is a trade-off between social equity and economic efficiency, whether socialism impairs innovation and technical progress, whether socialism is practically feasible, and whether economic planning is compatible with individual freedom. The course will examine how economists have engaged with these issues, paying particular attention to the following topics: John Stuart Mill and other pre-marginalist thinkers on the feasibility of socialism; Marx’s practical vision of a post-capitalist society; the early neoclassical economists on socialism and the role of the state; Fabian socialism; the socialist calculation debates of the mid-20th century (including the critiques put forward by von Mises and Hayek); the relation between the Keynesian Revolution and the discourse on socialism; and developments in the neoliberal era. The course will explore in roughly equal measures the intellectual history of the topic and the technical aspects of the economics of socialism. This course will be co taught by Davide Gualerzi

College: New School for Social Research (GF)

Department: Economics (ECO)

Campus: New York City (GV)

Course Format: Seminar (R)

Modality: In-Person

Max Enrollment: 15

Add/Drop Deadline: February 4, 2024 (Sunday)

Online Withdrawal Deadline: April 16, 2024 (Tuesday)

Seats Available: Yes

Status: Closed*

* Status information is updated every few minutes. The status of this course may have changed since the last update. Open seats may have restrictions that will prevent some students from registering. Updated: 6:28am EDT 3/29/2024