[New Entry by Mikko Tolonen and Robin Douglass on June 3, 2024.]
Bernard Mandeville (1670 – 1733), an Anglo-Dutch physician and philosopher, achieved fame through his notorious work The Fable of the Bees: Or, Private Vices, Publick Benefits. He is most well-known for arguing that economic prosperity depends upon harnessing individuals’ self-interested and even vicious passions, an idea which outraged his contemporaries and has subsequently led to him occupying an important place in the history of economic thought. The Fable of the Bees is a far more…

Originally appeared on Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy Read More