'The Principles of Political Economy, and Taxation' is a book written by David Ricardo, a British economist who lived from 1772 to 1823. First published in 1817, the book is considered a landmark in the development of classical economics, and is one of the most influential works in the field.
In the book, Ricardo lays out his theories of economic rent, labor value, and comparative advantage. He argues that economic rent, which is the difference between the value of a resource and its production cost, is the main source of wealth in an economy. He also discusses the relationship between labor and value, and how labor contributes to the creation of wealth.
Ricardo's most famous contribution to economics is his theory of comparative advantage, which argues that countries should specialize in producing goods for which they have a comparative advantage, even if they could produce other goods more efficiently. This theory has had a profound impact on international trade policy.
'The Principles of Political Economy, and Taxation' was controversial in its time, and Ricardo's ideas were met with criticism and opposition. However, his work has had a lasting impact on the field of economics, and is still studied and debated today.
The works of the English political economist David Ricardo (1772-1823), and particularly his most important work, The Principles of Political Economy and Taxation, lie at the heart of the laissez faire school of economics, preceded by Adam Smith and followed by John Stuart Mill.
Economic growth, economic freedom - free trade rather than mercantilism, or controlled trade - was the fundamental attitude. Having been disowned by his Sephardic Jewish family for marrying outside the faith at the age of 21, Ricardo went on to make his own fortune, notably gaining ‘a million sterling' by speculating on the outcome of the Battle of Waterloo. But it was with The Principles of Political Economy and Taxation (1817, revised 1821) that he placed his name in the history of economics.
He expanded Smith's ideas on the ‘labour theory of value' and the theory of distribution. In the first, Ricardo argued that competitive market conditions linked the value or price of goods to the labour costs of producing them. In the second, he said that national product emerged from three social classes: wages for labourers, profits for owners of capital, and rents for landlords and that a benefit for one incurred a loss for another. Underpinning all this is his insistence that free trade, rather than protectionism - allowing international and domestic markets to operate without controls - was ultimately beneficial to all, though changing conditions result in occasional fluctuations. His work proved of lasting influence through Karl Marx and down to the present day.
This recording, clearly read by Matthew Lloyd Davies, uses the final 1821 text.
