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The Birth Of Homo Œconomicus: The Methodological Debate On The Economic Agent From J. S. Mill To V. Pareto

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  • Bee, Michele
  • Desmarais-Tremblay, Maxime

Abstract

This paper proposes a genealogy of the concept of homo œconomicus as it emerged from the methodological debate on the economic agent of political economy. If John Stuart Mill gave birth to the economic man in his 1836 essay “On the Definition of Political Economy,” he certainly did not baptize him. The expression was introduced by Francis A. Walker after Mill passed away in the 1870s. Economic man acquired its Latin name of homo œconomicus under the pen of French Catholic economist Claudio Jannet in 1878. Yet, only at the end of the century did Maffeo Pantaleoni (1889) proudly reclaim homo œconomicus as a building block of pure economics. In reaction to the evolutionary hedonism of Pantaleoni, Vilfredo Pareto then cleansed the concept of homo œconomicus and realized the Millian project of an abstract science based on an economic agent.

Suggested Citation

  • Bee, Michele & Desmarais-Tremblay, Maxime, 2023. "The Birth Of Homo Œconomicus: The Methodological Debate On The Economic Agent From J. S. Mill To V. Pareto," Journal of the History of Economic Thought, Cambridge University Press, vol. 45(1), pages 1-26, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:jhisec:v:45:y:2023:i:1:p:1-26_1
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    Cited by:

    1. Nick Byrd, 2025. "Strategic Reflectivism In Intelligent Systems," Papers 2505.22987, arXiv.org, revised Jul 2025.
    2. Rodrigo Laera, 2025. "Value neutrality and the question of ends in teleological economic definitions," The Journal of Philosophical Economics, Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies, The Journal of Philosophical Economics, vol. 18(1), pages 124-159, Annual.
    3. Manuela Mosca, 2025. "The Masculinity of Homo Oeconomicus. Maffeo Pantaleoni and Feminism," HISTORY OF ECONOMIC THOUGHT AND POLICY, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 2025(1), pages 13-36.

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