Merchants and councilors: intellectual divergences in early 17th century British economic thought

Carlos Eduardo Suprinyak

doi:10.1590/s0103-63512011000300006

Abstract

During the early 1620's, England went through a period of intense economic disorders which sparked the interest of many in economic reasoning. The decade witnessed the emergence of the most relevant pieces of economic literature of the early Stuart era, but the debate was not restricted to the abstract confrontation of economic writers. The fundamental issue at stake in the controversies between Malynes, Misselden, and Mun - the integration of money and international trade in a coherent explanation of economic phenomena - was also the subject of much care in the public sphere at large. The parliamentary session of 1621, in particular, put in evidence not only the fundamental relevance of the matter for understanding England's economic maladies, but also the great difficulties involved in its investigation. By bringing all these elements together, this paper seeks to articulate a more dense and meaningful portrait of the prevailing state of economic ideas in early 17th century England.

Highlights

The works produced by Gerard de Malynes, Edward Misselden, and Thomas Mun during the 1620’s are generally regarded as the most relevant pieces of economic reasoning to have appeared in early 17th century England
The analysis developed in this paper has shown how the economic literature which came up during the 1620’s responded to the intellectual challenges raised during the parliamentary debates in 1621
480 Merchants and councilors vehicles for the spreading of ideas were not necessarily formal tracts and pamphlets; debates and investigations held in the public sphere did much to further economic insight and channel intellectual efforts into specific directions

Summary

Carlos Eduardo Suprinyak

Palavras-chave pensamento econômico pré-clássico, mercantilismo, século XVII, Inglaterra Stuart, Thomas Mun. Classificação JEL B11, B31, N23. A década testemunhou o surgimento das mais relevantes obras econômicas do início do período Stuart; porém, o debate não esteve restrito às confrontações abstratas dos autores especializados. The parliamentary session of 1621, in particular, put in evidence the fundamental relevance of the matter for understanding England’s economic maladies, and the great difficulties involved in its investigation. By bringing all these elements together, this paper seeks to articulate a more dense and meaningful portrait of the prevailing state of economic ideas in early 17th century England

1_ Introduction

7_ Concluding remarks

Referências bibliográficas