Murray Rothbard

Major Conservative and Libertarian Thinkers

by Gerard Casey, John Meadowcroft (Series Editor)

Murray Rothbard (1926-1995) was an economist, historian, philosopher, and legal theoretician. His work was unified by a passionate and resolute commitment to a libertarianism that may be characterized as 'anarcho-capitalism' and which implied a belief that even the legal system may be provided privately without the need for a coercive collective authority. Hence, anarcho-capitalists envisage a society where the traditional role of government is wholly subsumed by private, profit-making enterprises and all social relationships are ultimately founded upon consent.
Rothbard's unique intellectual contribution was to build this system of thought from many pre-existing but previously disparate strands and to develop it to its logical conclusion. Rothbard's starting points were the notions of methodological individualism, natural rights theory, and individual self-ownership. He showed that if we wish these seriously then the justification for government falls away. According to Rothbard government can only be 'justified' if we abandon the notion that individuals have the right to determine what to do with their own bodies, a step he believed to be unconscionable.

Genres: Philosophy

169 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Gerard Casey (born 1951) was a member of the School of Philosophy in University College Dublin (Head from 2001–2006) until he retired in December 2015. He is now a Professor Emeritus of the University. He holds law degrees from the University of London and University College Dublin as well as a primary degree in philosophy from University College Cork, an MA and PhD from the University of Notre Dame and the higher doctorate, DLitt, from the National University of Ireland. He was formerly Assistant Professor at The Catholic University of America (Washington, D.C.), 1983-1986 and Adjunct Professor at the Pontifical Institute in Washington D.C., 1984-86. He is an Associated Scholar at the Ludwig von Mises Institute in Auburn, Alabama.