From Marx to Markets
From Marx to Markets
An Intellectual Odyssey
Geoffrey M. Hodgson
To be published in 2025
Edward Elgar Publishing
This is an account of my intellectual evolution. It traces some important threads in my thinking, and the circumstances that affected them. I have changed my mind on several things. But hopefully, I have learned something useful. It is a quest, since my birth in 1946, to understand a complex and rapidly evolving world. Along this journey, I have changed my mind on several things, but not on the importance of building a better system, wherein all people can freely develop and flourish, and with full respect for human rights. What has changed, is my view on how best those improvements can be realized.
Contents
Preface
Introduction
Part I: Histories
1. Science and the Cold War
2. Revolution and youth
3. Crises in theory and in reality
4. A road less travelled
5. Britain under the Iron Lady
6. Rummaging the attic of past ideas
Part II: Themes
7. The nature and importance of definitions
8. The future of evolutionary economics
9. The development of institutional analysis
10. After the Great Crash: socialism versus liberal solidarity
11. Building an economics for a better world
Appendices
List of works partly or wholly by Geoffrey M. Hodgson
Other references
Index
Comments
Peter Earl, University of Queensland, Australia
“This fascinating and important book reveals how Geoff Hodgson evolved from an activist on the British political left to a global leader in institutional and evolutionary economics, and how his thinking changed during his long career. It will not only satisfy the curiosity of established academics, especially those who have struggled to keep up with his prodigious output, it is also essential reading for early-career economists, who will benefit from its historical perspectives, and how economics should be practised to help create a better world.”
Mehrdad Vahabi, University of Paris 13 North, France
“Geoffrey Hodgson is one of the most prominent institutional economists of our time. His rich and insightful contributions to economics are numerous. In this nicely written autobiography, we are introduced to his fascinating journey from a Marxist thinker to a founder of legal institutionalism. His enduring concern has always been the betterment of human life through the knowledge of economics and social sciences.”
Dennis Tourish, University of Sussex, UK
“Fascinating, insightful, often provocative and elegantly written throughout – this is an intellectual odyssey well worth joining.”
Anthony Kasozi, Quilibria Consulting, UK
“This book beautifully, honestly and without sentimentality blends a judicious exposition of steps personal with the unfolding and shared stories of steps intellectual, public and professional. This book is a gateway to Hodgson’s research over 50 years, including for people who are not economists by training.”
Juha-Antti Lamberg, University of Jyväskylä, Finland
“This is a profound and admirable book that had a lasting impression on me. Among other things, it is an intriguing account of the importance of ideas and their dissemination.”