Abstract
In his first economic writings Quesnay showed particular interest in the variation of agricultural prices. This article shows that the ‘initial situation’ was characterized by a price–quanity relation of the ‘king–Davenant Law’ type, whereas the ‘state of prosperity’ that Quesnay advocates involves the elimination of such a relation. Quesnay furthermore suggests a number of institutional modifications which, when linked to men's behaviour, would make it possible for this state of prosperity to be attained through a reallocation of productive resources. This article shows how economic behaviour of this kind may be interpreted in terms of the opposition between particular and enlightened interest, and highlights some specific features of Quesnay's conception of the market mechanism.
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