This edited volume provides a comprehensive survey of the life and work of David Ricardo (1772–1823), a major contributor to the British classical school of political economy. John E. King’s editorial introduction sets Ricardo’s work in the economic, political and social context of his time, emphasising his strong defence of economic and political liberalism and his opposition to the beneficiaries of contemporary ‘Old Corruption’. King’s later chapter deals in more depth with Ricardo’s political views and his position on important questions of economic policy, as well as the controversial conclusions that were drawn from his theoretical works by the so-called ‘Ricardian Socialists’.
A very different approach is taken by Wilfried Parys, whose discussion of Ricardo’s – highly successful – business activities raises the question of how they may have influenced the development of his theoretical ideas. A detailed examination of particular aspects of this theoretical work is provided by Ghislain Deleplace, who examines his theory of money; by Gilbert Faccarello whose subject is the Ricardian theory of international trade; by Christian Gehrke, who analyses Ricardo’s distinctive approach to explaining the distribution of income; by Alex Thomas, who is concerned with Ricardo’s role in British classical political economy, with particular reference to the theory of value; and by Bryan Turner, who sets out Ricardo’s complex and important relationship with Robert Malthus and the latter’s population theory.
Michael Howard explains how Ricardo was interpreted, and criticised, first by Karl Marx and then, over the next century and a half, by various strands of the Marxist movement around the globe. William Coleman’s chapter investigates similar issues from a very different perspective, exploring the critical reception and interpretation of Ricardo’s economic thought in the ‘New World’ society of Australia. And Heinz Kurz examines the causes and considers the consequences of some of the widespread misinterpretations of Ricardo in the two centuries since his death.