An enquiry into the ideology and reality of markets and market systems

Why do markets exist? How are they maintained? What are market systems and how are they formed? This book addresses these fundamental questions and challenges the traditional view that markets and market systems are 'natural', asserting instead that they are ideologically coloured and of dubious scientific value. Front Matter....Pages i-xi Introduction....Pages 1-11 Front Matter....Pages 13-14 Nature of Market....Pages 15-37 Market Politics and Social Discourse....Pages 38-55 Market and Law....Pages 56-65 Market Reality and Market Beliefs....Pages 66-78 Market As Science....Pages 79-90 Market Application....Pages 91-104 Front Matter....Pages 105-106 Nature of Mercantifers....Pages 107-115 How Mercantifers Emerge and Function....Pages 116-130 Market Failure and Mercantifer Success....Pages 131-142 Mercantifer Processes....Pages 143-160 Types of Mercantifer....Pages 161-175 Trajectories and Mercantifers....Pages 176-184 Theory of Mercantifers....Pages 185-197 Front Matter....Pages 199-199 Mercantifer Systems....Pages 201-217 Mercantifers and Money....Pages 218-230 Conclusions....Pages 231-232 Back Matter....Pages 233-287 Markets are everywhere; they are at the core of Western social philosophy. This book addresses the questions of why they exist, how they came into being and how they are made and maintained, and provides a detailed analysis of this little-examined area of economics. John Lepper challenges the traditional view that markets are costless and 'natural', instead asserting that markets are made and unmade artificially, often with political motivation. The application of mercantifer theory is used to solve some of the well-known difficulties that can arise when applying market forces to economies. It is contended that the outcomes of mercantifers are the result of forces unrelated to preferences and rational action