The Historical School: From Friedrich List to the Social Market Economy. Zemfira Nazarova

Чтение книги онлайн.

      Evaluating the economic history of Germany, F.Liszt notes, – «Even at the beginning of the XVIII century in Germany we see: barbarism in literature and language, barbarism in legislation, administration and court; barbarism in agriculture; decline of industry and large-scale trade; lack of national unity and strength; powerlessness and weakness in everything compared to foreign countries. One thing alone has saved the Germans: their original character; their love of labor, order, thrift, and moderation, their perseverance and endurance in research and affairs; their earnest desire for the best; their great store of morality, moderation, and prudence.»51.

      As a champion of German national unity, he favored transforming Germany into a power capable of economic and political expansion on the world stage. War is «a blessing for the nation,» he said. Drawing attention to the historical peculiarities of the development of capitalism in Germany, he opposed both the supporters of feudal-patriarchal orders and the supporters of liberalization of the economy.

      Noting the state of the Russian economy, List shows a thorough knowledge of the economic policies of the Russian government and the country’s economic history in chapter eight, «The Russians.» He refers to the political economy course of A. Storch, which was no less respected in Russia than the works of Say in Germany. Let us turn to the primary source: «Russia owes its first successes in culture and industry to relations with Greece, then to trade with Hanse through Novgorod, and finally, after the conquest of this city by Tsar John Vasilievich, as well as due to the opening of the waterway through the White Sea, to trade with the British and the Dutch. Significant development of Russian industry, as well as mainly the softening of manners, however, began only with the reign of Peter the Great. The history of Russia, from the seventeenth century to the forties of the eighteenth century, provides striking evidence of what a powerful economic prosperity of the people»52. List believes that reasonable trade and economic policy, conducted at different times in Russia, led to the fact that «trade crises have completely ceased, and it is enough just to look at the latest reports of the Russian Ministry of Finance to see that Russia thanks to this system has achieved a high degree of prosperity and that it is moving giant steps along the path of national wealth and power… Any nation, as well as any person, has no more dear interests as their own. Russia has nothing to concern herself with the welfare of Germany. Let Germany concern herself with Germany, Russia with Russia. Instead of complaining, hoping and waiting, for the Messiah of future free trade, it would be far better to throw cosmopolitan systems into the fire and learn from the example of Russia»53.

      Paying attention to the economy of the North Americans, F. List states that «the trade and industrial history of North America is more instructive for our purpose than any other, since here development is rapid, periods of freedom and restrictions and constraints quickly follow one after another, their results are seen with clarity and certainty, and the whole system of national industry and public administration is openly unfolded before the eyes of the observer»54.

      In the tenth chapter of «Lessons of History» F. List notes «history teaches, therefore, that individuals derive most of their productive forces from social institutions and social organization». And then List writes: «history teaches that arts and crafts wander from city to city, from country to country. Persecuted and oppressed in their homelands, they flee to those cities and countries which afford them freedom, patronage and support. Thus they passed from Greece and Asia to Italy, thence to Germany, Flanders, and Brabant, and from these latter to Holland and England. Everywhere recklessness and despotism drove them out, but the spirit of freedom attracted them»55.

      F.List creates his system of historical-economic development, assuming that all nations in their economic development go through certain stages. In «economic terms, nations must pass through the following stages of development: the state of initial savagery, pastoral, agricultural, agricultural-manufacturing and agricultural-manufacturing-commercial»56. List regarded the agricultural-manufacturing-commercial stage as an ideal, the achievement of which for young countries (to which he included Germany and the United States) is impossible without a policy of industrial protectionism. For the countries that were behind Great Britain in terms of the level of development of their economies, according to List, the transition to the «agricultural-manufacturing-commercial state,» the highest stage of economic development of nations, was possible only through a system of protectionism. At the end of the chapter «Lessons of History» he notes that at the first stage of development are Spain, Portugal and Naples, at the second Germany and North America, not far from the border of the latter is France, and at the last stage is still only Great Britain. List believes that a nation that has not reached the height of its economic power, has the right to defend itself and create patronizing tariffs, against the competition of other industrial countries. Germany was in this exact position and therefore, List’s endeavor was merely an effort to theorize the country’s overdue economic problems. Being an advocate of protectionist policy, List limits his protectionism only to the field of manufacturing industry and considers inadmissible the establishment of any duties for agricultural products, as it only delays the transition of the nation to the next manufactory stage. It should also be said that he considers it inadmissible to impose any duties on agricultural products, because this will retard the development of the nation, and here freedom of trade is needed. It is not difficult to see that Germany, while interested in industrial protectionism, was equally interested in free trade in agricultural products and was opposed to the bread protective import duties then existing in England.

      Book two, «Theory» of the «National System of Political Economy», is devoted to analyzing the views of the economists of the classical school, F. Kenet, A. Smith, J.-B. Say, whose theories he outlines, subjected to sharp criticism, and develops the theoretical foundations of his system. List notes, «Kené, who first originated the idea of universal freedom of trade, extended the scope of his research to the whole of humanity, having no idea of a separate nation… he would like „merchants of all nations to form one trade republic.“ Clearly, Kenet had in mind cosmopolitan economics, i.e., that science which teaches how the human race can secure its own welfare, as opposed to political economy, or that science which confines itself to the study of how a given nation, under known world relations, by means of agriculture, industry, and commerce, achieves prosperity, civilization, and power…Adam Smith, like Kenet, did not think of writing a treatise on the subject of political economy, i.e., the policy which individual nations should follow in order to make progress in their economic condition.»57

      Classical political economy only overlooked the essence of nationalities, their interests and their special conditions. Each nation has its own path of development, argued List. The final unification of individual nations on an economic basis is possible only when all nations fully develop their productive forces. Therefore, List noted, not for every nation and not at any time can be applied the same common measures of economic policy for all. What is useful for one nation may be premature for another, as it does not have the appropriate level of development of productive forces. Therefore, the protectionist system is the only means to raise lagging nations to the level of the nations ahead of them. List notes «the protectionist system is, from this point of view, a powerful force drawing nations towards the ultimate goal of the association of nations, and hence towards true free trade. From the same point of view, national (political) economy is a science which, recognizing the existing interests and individual conditions of nations, teaches how each of them can rise to the same degree of economic СКАЧАТЬ