Who Cooked Adam Smith's Dinner?: A Story of Women and Economics

Business & Finance, Economics, Economic History, Nonfiction, History
Cover of the book Who Cooked Adam Smith's Dinner?: A Story of Women and Economics by Katrine Marcal, Pegasus Books
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Katrine Marcal ISBN: 9781681771854
Publisher: Pegasus Books Publication: June 7, 2016
Imprint: Pegasus Books Language: English
Author: Katrine Marcal
ISBN: 9781681771854
Publisher: Pegasus Books
Publication: June 7, 2016
Imprint: Pegasus Books
Language: English

A funny, clever, and thought-provoking examination of the myth of the "economic man" and its impact on the global economy

How do you get your dinner? That is the basic question of economics. When economist and philosopher Adam Smith proclaimed that all our actions were motivated by self-interest, he used the example of the baker and the butcher as he laid the foundations for 'economic man.' He argued that the baker and butcher didn't give bread and meat out of the goodness of their hearts. It's an ironic point of view coming from a bachelor who lived with his mother for most of his life — a woman who cooked his dinner every night.

Nevertheless, the economic man has dominated our understanding of modern-day capitalism, with a focus on self-interest and the exclusion of all other motivations. Such a view point disregards the unpaid work of mothering, caring, cleaning and cooking. It insists that if women are paid less, then that's because their labor is worth less. Economics has told us a story about how the world works and we have swallowed it, hook, line and sinker. This story has not served women well. Now it's time to change it.

A kind of femininst Freakonomics, Who Cooked Adam Smith’s Dinner? charts the myth of economic man — from its origins at Adam Smith's dinner table, its adaptation by the Chicago School, and its disastrous role in the 2008 Global Financial Crisis — in a witty and courageous dismantling of one of the biggest myths of our time.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

A funny, clever, and thought-provoking examination of the myth of the "economic man" and its impact on the global economy

How do you get your dinner? That is the basic question of economics. When economist and philosopher Adam Smith proclaimed that all our actions were motivated by self-interest, he used the example of the baker and the butcher as he laid the foundations for 'economic man.' He argued that the baker and butcher didn't give bread and meat out of the goodness of their hearts. It's an ironic point of view coming from a bachelor who lived with his mother for most of his life — a woman who cooked his dinner every night.

Nevertheless, the economic man has dominated our understanding of modern-day capitalism, with a focus on self-interest and the exclusion of all other motivations. Such a view point disregards the unpaid work of mothering, caring, cleaning and cooking. It insists that if women are paid less, then that's because their labor is worth less. Economics has told us a story about how the world works and we have swallowed it, hook, line and sinker. This story has not served women well. Now it's time to change it.

A kind of femininst Freakonomics, Who Cooked Adam Smith’s Dinner? charts the myth of economic man — from its origins at Adam Smith's dinner table, its adaptation by the Chicago School, and its disastrous role in the 2008 Global Financial Crisis — in a witty and courageous dismantling of one of the biggest myths of our time.

More books from Pegasus Books

Cover of the book Lady Tigers in the Concrete Jungle: How Softball and Sisterhood Saved Lives in the South Bronx by Katrine Marcal
Cover of the book The Viking Wars: War and Peace in King Alfred's Britain: 789?955 by Katrine Marcal
Cover of the book The Lovecraft Squad: All Hallows Horror: A Novel (Lovecraft Squad) by Katrine Marcal
Cover of the book Byron Easy by Katrine Marcal
Cover of the book The Great Invention: The Story of GDP and the Making and Unmaking of the Modern World by Katrine Marcal
Cover of the book A Door in the River by Katrine Marcal
Cover of the book The Dog Merchants: Inside the Big Business of Breeders, Pet Stores, and Rescuers by Katrine Marcal
Cover of the book Farewell to Reality by Katrine Marcal
Cover of the book The Be-Bop Barbarians: A Graphic Novel by Katrine Marcal
Cover of the book The Disappearance of Émile Zola: Love, Literature, and the Dreyfus Case by Katrine Marcal
Cover of the book Washed Away by Katrine Marcal
Cover of the book Ghost Stories: Classic Tales of Horror and Suspense by Katrine Marcal
Cover of the book The Poet and the Vampyre: The Curse of Byron and the Birth of Literature's Greatest Monsters by Katrine Marcal
Cover of the book Roosevelt's Navy: The Education of a Warrior President, 1882-1920 by Katrine Marcal
Cover of the book Jane and Dorothy: A True Tale of Sense and Sensibility:The Lives of Jane Austen and Dorothy Wordsworth by Katrine Marcal
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy