Policy Press

The Hand Behind the Invisible Hand

Dogmatic and Pragmatic Views on Free Markets and the State of Economic Theory

By Karl Mittermaier

Published

Jul 22, 2020

Page count

278 pages

ISBN

978-1529209099

Dimensions

234 x 156 mm

Imprint

Bristol University Press

Published

Jul 22, 2020

Page count

278 pages

ISBN

978-1529215793

Dimensions

Imprint

Bristol University Press
The Hand Behind the Invisible Hand
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Available Open Access under CC-BY-NC-ND

Made famous by the Enlightenment thinker Adam Smith, the concept of an ‘invisible hand’ might be taken to imply that a government that governs least governs the best, from the viewpoint of society. Here an invisible hand appears to represent unfettered market forces.

Drawing from this much-contested notion, Mittermaier indicates why such a view represents only one side of the story and distinguishes between what he calls pragmatic and dogmatic free marketeers.

Published posthumously, with new contributions by Daniel Klein, Rod O’Donnell and Christopher Torr, this book outlines Mittermaier’s main thesis and his relevance for ongoing debates within economics, politics, sociology and philosophy.

Karl Mittermaier (1938–2016) was affiliated with the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, for over thirty years until his retirement in 1998.

Foreword ~ Isabella Mittermaier

Mittermaier’s Modern Message ~ Christopher Torr

The Hand Behind the Invisible Hand ~ Karl Mittermaier

Karl Mittermaier’s Pursuit of Classical Liberal Coherence ~ Daniel B. Klein

Karl Mittermaier, a Philosopher-Economist with a Penetrating Intellect and Twinkling Eye ~ Rod O’Donnell