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A Treatise on Political Economy
The neglect of Antoine Louis Claude Destutt de Tracy (1754–1836) in the history of political economy is both strange and tragic. He was, after all, Thomas Jefferson's number one, favorite economist, the thinker who influenced him and, arguably, laid the ideological foundation of the American economic system as Jefferson understood it.
What's more, this reprint of the 1817 edition of his book was prepared personally by Jefferson and contains an editorial note by him. "It would be difficult to do justice, in any translation, to the style of the original, in which no word is unnecessary, no word can be changed for the better, and severity of logic results in that brevity, to which we wish all science reduced. The merit of this work will, I hope, place it in the hands of every reader in our country. By diffusing sound principles of Political Economy, it will protect the public industry from the parasite institutions now consuming it, and lead us to that just and regular distribution of the public burthens from which we have sometimes strayed."
This high praise from Jefferson has somehow not translated into deserved fame for this book. One reason for this has to do with Tracy's own radicalism. He went further than any of his French contemporaries in the defense of trade, property, hard money, commerce, and his attacks on the state. This led to the banishment of his works in France, and an attempt by Napoleon to blunt his influence. Whereas Tracy coined the term "ideology" to refer to the science of the formation of ideals, Napoleon dismissed him and all those he influenced as "ideologues." This is how the term enters into modern usage.
In this passage, Tracy sums up his view of society: "Society is purely and solely a continual series of exchanges. It is never anything else, in any epoch of its duration, from its commencement the most unformed, to its greatest perfection. And this is the greatest eulogy we can give to it, for exchange is an admirable transaction, in which the two contracting parties always both gain; consequently society is an uninterrupted succession of advantages, unceasingly renewed for all its members."
He is extremely precise about the nature of value: it is subjective and revealed in action. His account of regulation is telling: "For it is very certain that in general the most powerful encouragement that can be given to industry of every kind, is to let it alone, and not to meddle with it. The human mind would advance very rapidly if only not restrained; and it would be led, by the force of things to do always what is most essential on every occurrence. To direct it artificially on one side rather than on another, is commonly to lead it astray instead of guiding it."
This work presents the main thrust of all of his ideas, including his loathing of inflation and state-granted monopoly privilege. He was even opposed to state spending on infrastructure, pointing out that private individuals have built bridges, roads, canals, and even monuments.
Summing up this book, Professor Timothy Terrell writes that despite the neglect of Tracy, it is clear that his "deductive methodology, his subjectivism, his catallactics, and his opposition to governmental monetary fraud and regulation have been carried through to the modern-day Austrian school in the tradition of Ludwig von Mises and Murray Rothbard."
This edition is a facsimile of the original edited by Jefferson.
[Mises.org]
What's more, this reprint of the 1817 edition of his book was prepared personally by Jefferson and contains an editorial note by him. "It would be difficult to do justice, in any translation, to the style of the original, in which no word is unnecessary, no word can be changed for the better, and severity of logic results in that brevity, to which we wish all science reduced. The merit of this work will, I hope, place it in the hands of every reader in our country. By diffusing sound principles of Political Economy, it will protect the public industry from the parasite institutions now consuming it, and lead us to that just and regular distribution of the public burthens from which we have sometimes strayed."
This high praise from Jefferson has somehow not translated into deserved fame for this book. One reason for this has to do with Tracy's own radicalism. He went further than any of his French contemporaries in the defense of trade, property, hard money, commerce, and his attacks on the state. This led to the banishment of his works in France, and an attempt by Napoleon to blunt his influence. Whereas Tracy coined the term "ideology" to refer to the science of the formation of ideals, Napoleon dismissed him and all those he influenced as "ideologues." This is how the term enters into modern usage.
In this passage, Tracy sums up his view of society: "Society is purely and solely a continual series of exchanges. It is never anything else, in any epoch of its duration, from its commencement the most unformed, to its greatest perfection. And this is the greatest eulogy we can give to it, for exchange is an admirable transaction, in which the two contracting parties always both gain; consequently society is an uninterrupted succession of advantages, unceasingly renewed for all its members."
He is extremely precise about the nature of value: it is subjective and revealed in action. His account of regulation is telling: "For it is very certain that in general the most powerful encouragement that can be given to industry of every kind, is to let it alone, and not to meddle with it. The human mind would advance very rapidly if only not restrained; and it would be led, by the force of things to do always what is most essential on every occurrence. To direct it artificially on one side rather than on another, is commonly to lead it astray instead of guiding it."
This work presents the main thrust of all of his ideas, including his loathing of inflation and state-granted monopoly privilege. He was even opposed to state spending on infrastructure, pointing out that private individuals have built bridges, roads, canals, and even monuments.
Summing up this book, Professor Timothy Terrell writes that despite the neglect of Tracy, it is clear that his "deductive methodology, his subjectivism, his catallactics, and his opposition to governmental monetary fraud and regulation have been carried through to the modern-day Austrian school in the tradition of Ludwig von Mises and Murray Rothbard."
This edition is a facsimile of the original edited by Jefferson.
[Mises.org]
- GenresEconomics
379 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1817
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About the author
Antoine Destutt de Tracy
38 books6 followersAux élections aux États généraux, il est élu député par la noblesse du Bourbonnais réunie à Moulins.
Il est un des premiers de son ordre à se rallier au tiers état après la crise du 20 juin 1789 et un des plus enthousiastes lors de la nuit du 4 août 1789.
Lorsque l'Assemblée constituante est remplacée par la Législative en septembre 1791[3], il se consacre aux sciences avec son ami Pierre-Jean-Georges Cabanis. Il est cependant nommé maréchal de camp (général de brigade) par La Fayette, commandant de l'armée du Nord, en 1792 ; mais, après le 10 août 1792 et l'émigration de son chef, il revient à la vie civile.
Pendant la Terreur, il est arrêté comme suspect le 2 novembre 1793 et reste incarcéré pendant onze mois, durant lesquels il s'initie à la philosophie sensualiste de Locke et de Condillac, mettant au point sa propre doctrine. Il recouvre la liberté après la chute de Robespierre (9 thermidor an II/27 juillet 1794).
Après le 18 brumaire, auquel ses amis de la société d'Auteuil, dont Sieyès est alors le chef, ont puissamment contribué, il est nommé l'un des trente premiers sénateurs.
Au Sénat conservateur, il est le chef des « idéologues » méprisés par Napoléon Ier, qui en fait tout de même un comte d'Empire. Outre Destutt de Tracy et Cabanis, la Société des idéologues compte parmi ses membres le comte de Volney et Dominique Joseph Garat.
En 1800, il publie des Observations sur le système actuel d'instruction publique.
Il est élu membre de l'Académie française en 1808.
Louis XVIII le fait entrer à la Chambre des pairs en 1814[5].
Il devient membre de l'Académie des sciences morales et politiques en 1832.
Son œuvre a eu une influence réelle sur les philosophes et économistes du XIXe siècle, notamment Thomas Brown, John Stuart Mill, Herbert Spencer, Taine et Théodule Ribot, mais aussi sur Stendhal et Karl Marx..
Son fils Victor Destutt de Tracy a été parlementaire sous la monarchie de Juillet et ministre de la Marine.
Sa fille a épousé Georges Washington de La Fayette en 1802.
Il est un des premiers de son ordre à se rallier au tiers état après la crise du 20 juin 1789 et un des plus enthousiastes lors de la nuit du 4 août 1789.
Lorsque l'Assemblée constituante est remplacée par la Législative en septembre 1791[3], il se consacre aux sciences avec son ami Pierre-Jean-Georges Cabanis. Il est cependant nommé maréchal de camp (général de brigade) par La Fayette, commandant de l'armée du Nord, en 1792 ; mais, après le 10 août 1792 et l'émigration de son chef, il revient à la vie civile.
Pendant la Terreur, il est arrêté comme suspect le 2 novembre 1793 et reste incarcéré pendant onze mois, durant lesquels il s'initie à la philosophie sensualiste de Locke et de Condillac, mettant au point sa propre doctrine. Il recouvre la liberté après la chute de Robespierre (9 thermidor an II/27 juillet 1794).
Après le 18 brumaire, auquel ses amis de la société d'Auteuil, dont Sieyès est alors le chef, ont puissamment contribué, il est nommé l'un des trente premiers sénateurs.
Au Sénat conservateur, il est le chef des « idéologues » méprisés par Napoléon Ier, qui en fait tout de même un comte d'Empire. Outre Destutt de Tracy et Cabanis, la Société des idéologues compte parmi ses membres le comte de Volney et Dominique Joseph Garat.
En 1800, il publie des Observations sur le système actuel d'instruction publique.
Il est élu membre de l'Académie française en 1808.
Louis XVIII le fait entrer à la Chambre des pairs en 1814[5].
Il devient membre de l'Académie des sciences morales et politiques en 1832.
Son œuvre a eu une influence réelle sur les philosophes et économistes du XIXe siècle, notamment Thomas Brown, John Stuart Mill, Herbert Spencer, Taine et Théodule Ribot, mais aussi sur Stendhal et Karl Marx..
Son fils Victor Destutt de Tracy a été parlementaire sous la monarchie de Juillet et ministre de la Marine.
Sa fille a épousé Georges Washington de La Fayette en 1802.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
July 28, 2012
While any at least serviceable attempt at a translation is more appreciable than no attempt at all (in other words, with all gratitude extended to Thomas Jefferson's anonymous minions), do check all intentions regarding 'fidelity to the original' at the door in reading this version of the fourth volume of Tracy's monumental "Elements of Ideology." Tracy himself expressly and repeatedly stated *in this very text* that it was *not in any way* to be considered a treatise on "political economy" (such quotation marks being both 'scare quotes' as well as indicative of direct quotations), but, far rather, a treatise on the human faculty of *volition* -- and one which, in this exact regard, presaged Schopenhauer's "World As Will and Representation" far more than it bears relevance to anything that either Comte or even Marx ever accomplished in any regard. Underrated, censored, misunderstood -- If there's any future to political philosophy, philosophical politics, or either politics or philosophy tout court, don't waste time wringing hands over Badiou's incommensurable set theories or Meillassoux's spurious infinites. Their academically opportunistic aims would have been guillotined in every point of provable fact years before 1804. Think about what a loss the prevailing ignorance of Tracy leaves us at, now.
Displaying 1 of 1 review