The Economy of Esteem is a book by Geoffrey Brennan and Philip Pettit describing the role of self-esteem and honour in the economy. It was published in 2005 by Oxford University Press.
According to Brennan, others who have historically paid attention to the role of esteem in motivation include: "from Cicero and Polybius through Thomas Aquinas to Hobbes, Locke, Montesquieu, Hume, the American Founding Fathers, Kant, and notably Adam Smith" Though Brennan argues that modern 'invisible hand' economics neglects the importance of esteem.
Evidence:
"the behavior of suicide bombers in terrorist cadres; or the enthusiasm with which soldiers volunteer in situations of imminent warfare; or the stability of apparently perverse norms, like the caste system in India. What of the intense training, commitment and effort expended by athletes – even amateur athletes?"
What is unique about esteem among currencies
- esteem can't be traded- "esteem is necessarily produced under conditions of autarky"
- esteem is subject to the paradox of hedonism
Famous quotes containing the words economy and/or esteem:
“The counting-room maxims liberally expounded are laws of the Universe. The merchant’s economy is a coarse symbol of the soul’s economy. It is, to spend for power, and not for pleasure.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“Women are tenacious, and all of them should be tenacious of respect; without esteem they cannot exist; esteem is the first demand that they make of love.”
—Honoré De Balzac (1799–1850)