« Competition for Thee, Not Me | Main | Motives» Don Boudreaux
June 11, 2006
Bastiat's Brilliance
Don Boudreaux
Frederic Bastiat possessed an unsurpassed, and seldom matched, talent for seeing to the heart, the fallacious essence, of protectionist arguments. Consider this passage from Chapter Four of his book Economic Harmonies:
We can give the general name of obstacle to everything that, coming between our wants and our satisfactions, calls forth our efforts.
The interrelations of these four elements—want, obstacle, effort, satisfaction—are perfectly evident and understandable in the case of man in a state of isolation. Never, never in the world, would it occur to us to say:
"It is too bad that Robinson Crusoe does not encounter more obstacles; for, in that case, he would have more outlets for his efforts; he would be richer.
"It is too bad that the sea has cast up on the shore of the Isle of Despair useful articles, boards, provisions, arms, books; for it deprives Robinson Crusoe of an outlet for his efforts; he is poorer.
"It is too bad that Robinson Crusoe has invented nets to catch fish or game; for it lessens by that much the efforts he exerts for a given result; he is less rich.
"It is too bad that Robinson Crusoe is not sick oftener. It would give him the chance to practice medicine on himself, which is a form of labor; and, since all wealth comes from labor, he would be richer.
"It is too bad that Robinson Crusoe succeeded in putting out the fire that endangered his cabin. He has lost an invaluable opportunity for labor; he is less rich.
"It is too bad that the land on the Isle of Despair is not more barren, the spring not farther away, the sun not below the horizon more of the time. Robinson Crusoe would have more trouble providing himself with food, drink, light; he would be richer."
Never, I say, would people advance such absurd propositions as oracles of truth. It would be too completely evident that wealth does not consist in the amount of effort required for each satisfaction obtained, but that the exact opposite is true. We should understand that value does not consist in the want or the obstacle or the effort, but in the satisfaction; and we should readily admit that although Robinson Crusoe is both producer and consumer, in order to gauge his progress, we must look, not at his labor, but at its results. In brief, in stating the axiom that the paramount interest is that of the consumer, we should feel that we were simply stating a veritable truism.
How happy will nations be when they see clearly how and why what we find false and what we find true of man in isolation continue to be false or true of man in society!
Posted by Don Boudreaux in Myths and Fallacies, Trade | Permalink
TrackBack
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.typepad.com/services/trackback/6a00d834518ccc69e200d8342d445b53ef
Listed below are links to weblogs that reference Bastiat's Brilliance:
» Monday's Daily News from The Club for Growth Blog
ECONOMIC NEWS Interview with Larry Kudlow - Bill Steigerwald, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Death and Taxes: Crushing Americas Next Eggs - Union Leader Editorial Congress Should Stay Out of Cyberspace - Washington Post Editorial Free-Market Telecom ... [Read More]
Tracked on Jun 12, 2006 10:19:03 AM
» 'Fallacious Essence of Protectionist Arguments' from It Shines For All
Don Boudreaux at Cafe Hayek writes that "Frederic Bastiat possessed an unsurpassed, and seldom matched, talent for seeing to the heart, the fallacious essence, of protectionist arguments." Too bad for the French that they don't read their own countryma... [Read More]
Tracked on Jun 12, 2006 11:17:41 AM
Comments
I agree. About five years ago I did a commencement address for one university called the Two Freds - where I discussed Bastiat and Hayek. Bastiat made the great story about opportunity cost with his analogy on broken windows. He had a wonderful sense of humor that conveyed a lot about important principles of economics. It is a shame that his work is not read more often.
Posted by: drtaxsacto | Jun 11, 2006 1:41:23 PM
Great post Dr. Boudreaux. I'm also a big fan of Bastiat. So much wisdom from so long ago, and so many ignore it. ;-(
Posted by: Christopher Meisenzahl | Jun 11, 2006 7:19:36 PM
I agree with drtaxsacto. It would be nice to read more Bastiat and probably should be included in college courses. Its very important to include the Hayek's, Buchanan's and Friedman's, but to go to a less sought after source could really make a student feel unique in his studies.
Posted by: Tiberius | Jun 12, 2006 1:31:17 PM
Excellent passage. Another thing that Marx had muddled!
Posted by: liberty | Jun 12, 2006 3:39:50 PM
My favorite is the Candlemaker's Petition:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candlemakers%27_petition
Posted by: Michael Stack | Jun 14, 2006 4:40:23 PM
It was a copy of "The Law" that inspired me to study economics and brought me to my love of free markets. It amazes me that there is no print collection of Bastiat's works. His pointed common sense can't be argued against.
Posted by: Brandon Holmes | Jun 16, 2006 12:05:56 AM
Liberty Fund is preparing now the collected works of Frederic Bastiat, due out probably in 2007 or 2008.
The Foundation for Economic Education also has most of Bastiat's works available in English-language translations.
Posted by: Don Boudreaux | Jun 16, 2006 8:48:05 AM
Posted by: laptop battery | Oct 12, 2008 11:45:53 PM
The comments to this entry are closed.
