Abstract

INDAVERA STIEBEN, Leandro Gastón. THE EXPRESSION “INVISIBLE HAND” AS NON EXPLANATORY. Prax. filos. [online]. 2018, n.46, pp.111-123. ISSN 0120-4688.  https://doi.org/10.25100/pfilosofica.v0i46.6153.

According to economists such as Arrow, Hahn and Tobin, for example, the expression “invisible hand” is the most important contribution made in the History of Economic Thought and is explanatory of economic processes (Arrow & Hahn, 1971:1 and Tobin, 1992:117). In this paper a set of arguments are proposed in order to contend that Adam Smith’s “invisible hand” expression is not relevant in explanatory terms. Firstly, Smith is reluctunt to accept that expressions related to invisible and intelligent agents can explain natural phenomena. In order to analyze this topic, a Humean reading of Smith is attempted, as well as an interpretation of Smith’s critic of Kepler and Descartes.

Keywords : expression; hand invisible; no explain; Natural Phenomena; Belief; Knowledge.

        · abstract in Spanish     · text in Spanish     · Spanish ( pdf )