A Socialist Economy

Paper Summary:

The paper discusses how even after the "fall" of socialism, the world we live in is still debating the need for an economy modeled on altruism and collectivism, rather than profit driven by just a few. The paper looks at three foundational articles by three expert economic theorists where the theoretical issues of socialism are discussed. The paper examines the theories of Ludwig Von Mises, Friedrich Hayek and Oskar Lang. The paper contends that the middle class is disappearing and society is returning to earlier times when there was a finite delineation between the rich and the poor that was nearly impenetrable. The paper is of the opinion that the most compelling argument is the comprehensive work of Lang.

From the Paper:

"In Ludwig Von Mises article "Economic Calculation in Socialism", he contends that in a true socialistic economy calculations are not possible, as economy is fluid as opposed to fixed and any artificial means of determining issues such as price of goods would be impossible. In Friedrich Hayek's work, "The Price System as a Mechanism for Using Knowledge" he argues that a centralized decision making core, such as what would be found in a socialist economy would not inherently possess all the knowledge needed to make market decisions. Lastly, in Oskar Lang's "On the Economic Theory of Socialism," he argues that a central decision making body, which he calls a Central Planning Board, can set a group of parameters or values based on their knowledge of the marke, as a sort of amalgamation of market and socialist ideas to form a trial and error core that answers to all the conditions of socialism."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Hayek, Friedrich A. "The Price System As a Mechanism for Using Knowledge." In:Comparative Economic Systems 5th Edition. Ed. Morris Bornstein. New York: Richard D. Irwin Inc. 1985.
• Lang, Oskar. "On the Economic Theory of Socialism." The Review of Economic Studies, 4/1, Oct 1936, 53-71.
• Von Mises, Ludwig. "Economic Calculation In Socialism." In: Comparative EconomicSystems 5th Edition. Ed. Morris Bornstein. New York: Richard D. Irwin Inc.1985.

More papers on A Socialist Economy:

• Analytical Essay # 120231 : "Cuba's Economy"
• Persuasive Essay # 103046 : "Nazi Anti-Semitic Policy and Economy"
• Analytical Essay # 58954 : "Understanding International Political Economy"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: