Vision and Analysis in Schumpeter’s Theory: A Reappraisal in Economic Philosophy[La Vision et l’Analyse chez Schumpeter : une lecture critique en philosophie économique]

In order to deal with the relationship between science and ideology, Schumpeter distinguishes the Vision, an "effort of pre-analytical knowledge" which is, by definition, historically and socially located and which constitutes a necessary step of the scientific procedure on which is based what Schumpeter calls the "Analysis". The Analysis is strictly scientific work and responds, as such, to a number of rules whose objective is to provide satis- factory solutions to the problems encountered. The rules of analytical pro- cedure would be a solution to prevent the analysis from ideological contamination. Schumpeter thus develops a positive conception of science which is expressed by the elimination of ideology and philosophy by mov- ing them back to a pre-analytical moment. This paper intends to use economic philosophy, first as a tool to make a critical appraisal of the distinction between Vision and Analysis in Schumpeter's work. Indeed, rather than reconstructing a Vision, which would be prior and separate from the Analysis, economic philosophy proposes to grasp the fundamental philosophical questions of economic theories. In doing so, this paper proposes, secondly, to apply the methods of economic philosophy to Schumpeter's work in order to introduce a new entry to his work: the philosophical question running thought his work, i.e. the emergence of novelty.