James Steuart: debates around a forgotten precursor of the political economy of the Enlightenment

Abstract

In this work we revalue James Steuart as a precursor of political economy. To this end, we analyze the impact generated by the intellectual movements of the eighteenth century on the birth of the modern economic discipline. Steuart is an author long neglected by textbooks on the history of economic thought, and he even has been forgotten by enthusiastic scholars of the original economic liberalism. We argue that Steuart must be understood in the context of the formative development of the philosophical, social and moral thought of the Scottish Enlightenment that converges in Adam Smith. We emphasize his general vision of economic processes and economic policy, which derives from his theory and is based on the mercantilist heritage. We try to elucidate this apparent contradiction of being heir to both the Enlightenment and the protectionist tradition. We believe that the article will enable the readers to reflect on the various trends that emerged with the classical economic thought.