The Contribution to Economics of Each of the Following •...

Write an essay describing the contribution to economics of each of the following: †¢ Adam Smith †¢ Thomas Malthus †¢ David Ricardo †¢ Karl Marx †¢ Alfred Marshall †¢ John Maynard Keynes †¢ Milton Friedman â€Å"Many Economists have tried to establish why the economy performs as it does and want to have a basis for predicting how the economy will perform when circumstances change†. (Nagel, S pg 1 1999) Economists are just people after all, who have lived through different times and experiences in their lives, thus leading to different values and views. George Bernard Shaw once said that â€Å"If all economists were laid end to end they would not reach a conclusion†,(cited in Mankin, Taylor 2006) In this essay we will look at what contributions†¦show more content†¦Ricardo inspired by â€Å"Sutter’s† books developed the law of comparative advantage. This formed the basis of international trade. He believed in free international trade as it gets the maximum out of resources thus increasing income (Nagel) Karl Marx was born in Germany in 1818. He expressed his revolutionary socialist ideas in his two main publications the Communist Manifesto and Das Kapital. Marx basic economic beliefs were very alike the Classical economists, in that he supported a labour theory of value but his approach was completely different. Marx wanted things to change in such a way that would help to improve working conditions for the working classes. He did not believe in the â€Å"invisible Hand† and was more concerned with change and evolution throughout society. He believed communism would replace capitalism and that workers would have full control over all means of production leading to a more even allocation of wealth. He believed that the value of a good was the value of the amount of labour necessary to produce it. Therefore the value of goods produced by the worker was more than the wages paid to the worker, the difference being a surplus or profit to the employer. Marx argued that this was exp loitation of the workers by their capitalistic employers. Believing that the capitalists were profit hungry, Marx stated that the demand for labour would amplify which would in turn cause wages to rise. The rise in wages