The Political Theory of the Economy

What is an economy? Is an economy different from government? Or is 'the economy' a special way of governing people? Is capitalism an economy or a form of government? If the latter, what is distinctive about the ways of governing that are said to define capitalism? What principles should be invoked for the defense or criticism of a capitalist society? How should it be compared to its alternatives? This course asks these questions historically by pairing central figures in the history of political economy with important interpreters of them.