Introduction to economic theory

It is in the hope of providing an introduction for the main aspects of economic theory for the university students and the general readers that the book has been written. After the first war, countless monographs and technical articles in the various journals have extended the bounds of the economic science. This vast fund of research has not been integrated into the main body of the theory. The usual text-books deal only with the orthodox economic principles. Throughout this book, our pur pose has been to incorporate these extensions into the main body of the economic theory, merging the newer with the older doctrines.

Such a task, we are painfully aware, bristles with difficulties. But we have always tried to avoid the highly controversial issues. In our opinion, the treatment of such controversial topics in an introductory book like this will only lead to confusion among those for whom it is intended. So we have tried only to con solidate the older theories with the recent advances, without complicating the study by the introduction of technical contro versies over the disputed points. We have not attempted to advocate or attack any particular school of economics. Our aim has always been to discuss in impartial terms the main principles of economics and to make the science of economics comprehen sive, and at the same time understandable. We do not claim. to have mastered completely the researches in all branches of economic theory; neither do we claim any originality for our treatment. Wherever possible, we have acknowledged our debts to the various authors in the foot notes. We should, however, like to emphasise our special indebtedness to the classical works of Marshall and Taussig, on which generations of Indian students have been brought up.