Historical Epistemology of Ecological Economics: Essays on the Styles of Economic Reasoning (Contributions to Economics)

This volume uses historical epistemology in order to address several topics in the history of economic thought, with special emphasis on ecological economics, environmental metaphors of scarcity, and mathematical ecology. Using the field of ecological economics as an anchor point, the author reflects on the styles of reasoning in economics with a view towards understanding the nature of disagreement that stems from a failure of communication between rival approaches in economics. A thorough inquiry into issues related to identity, coherence, pluralism, and reception, this volume will appeal to researchers and students interested in history of economic thought, ecological economics, and philosophy of the sciences. Preface Contents Styles of Scientific Reasoning as Historiographical Metaphor: A Reply to Martin Kusch 1 Introduction 2 To Resist the Temptation of Structure: Styles as Historiographical Metaphor 3 Reply 3.1 Six Theses on the History and Philosophy of Styles of Scientific Reasoning 4 Discussion and Final Remarks The Myth of the Framework and the Modes of Thought in Economics 1 Introduction 2 The Myth of the Framework 2.1 The Myth of the Framework Revisited 3 Thinking Modes in Economics 3.1 Open and Closed Systems of Thought 3.2 Modes of Thought and Methodological Pluralism 4 The Debate on Methodological Pluralism in Ecological Economics 4.1 Richard B. Norgaard (1989) and Frameworks without Relativism 4.2 Clive L. Spash and the Methodological Closure Historical Epistemology of Ecological Economics and Styles of Economic Reasoning 1 Introduction 2 A Historical Epistemology of the Styles of Economic Reasoning 2.1 Antecedents 2.2 Seven Styles of Economic Reasoning Historical Style Neoclassical Style Biophysical Style Stochastic Style Computational Style 3 Speciation of Scientific Disciplines and Communication Breakdowns The Crisis of the Historical Style of Economic Reasoning: Joseph A. Schumpeter, Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen, and Paul A. Samuelson 1 Introduction 2 Joseph A. Schumpeter and the Historical Style of Economic Reasoning 2.1 Economic Crises in Historical Perspective 2.2 Schumpeter’s Evolutionism and the Macrodynamics of Capitalism 2.3 Business Cycle Theory 2.4 Charismatic Innovation, Creative Destruction, and Economic Progress 3 Parting Ways: Georgescu-Roegen and the Entropic Style of Economic Reasoning 3.1 Georgescu-Roegen Meets Schumpeter 3.2 Rejection of a Position at Harvard and Return to Romania 3.3 Schumpeter’s Influences on Georgescu-Roegen 4 Final Remarks: Schumpeter and the Decline of the Historical Style of Economic Reasoning Fundamental Disagreements in the Origin of Ecological Economics 1 Five Assaults to Neoclassical Economics 1.1 First Round: The Double Critique to Mathematical Reason and Mechanistic Epistemology 1.2 Second Round: The Debate on The Limits to Growth (1972) 1.3 Third Round: Scarcity and Growth Reconsidered (1979) 1.4 Fourth Round: Land Economics (1986) 1.5 Fifth Round: Ecological Economics (1997) Environmental Metaphors of Scarcity 1 Introduction 2 The Metrization Paradigm and the Environmental Metaphors of Ecological Economics 2.1 The Replacement of the Neoclassical Function of Production by Economic Metabolism 2.2 Economy Has Organs and a Plimsoll Line 2.3 Carrying Capacity, Ecological Footprint, and Natural Capital The Two Chief Epistemic Styles of Mathematical Ecology 1 Historical Epistemology and Ecology as an Epochal Threshold 2 Modern Mathematization of Nature 3 A Brief History of Mathematical Ecology: Authors and Topics 4 Mathematical Ecology as a Discipline Speciation Case 5 Leggiadro viso: The Old Myth of a Self-Speaking Nature Classical Historical Epistemology in Retrospect: A Review Essay 1 Is There a Continental History and Philosophy of Science? 2 Thomas S. Kuhn and the Continental History and Philosophy of Science 3 Ernst Cassirer and Neo-Kantian History of Science 4 French Historical Epistemology as Continental History and Philosophy of Science 5 Final Remarks: Thomas S. Kuhn Meets Gaston Bachelard