Question

Describe the view of laissez-faire economists (a) Adam Smith, (b) Thomas Malthus, (c) David Ricardo.

Answer 1

Answer:

(a) Adam Smith - Believed that that in a capitalist, free-market system, all economic agents are coordinated under "the invisible hand", and this results in the benefit of all of them.

(b) Thomas Malthus - Believed that while increased food production rose standards of living, the effect was only temporary, because the same rise in food supply lead to a rise in population growth, and there would a time when there would be too many people to be fed. (the Malthusian Catastrophe).

(c) David Ricardo - He opposed mercantilism, and argued instead that unrestrained free trade benefited every nations. This is because of the concept of comparative advantage: under a free trade systems, nations would specialize in those industries they do best, and import anything that they do not produce.