Nature in Economic Theories: Hans Immler Traces Recognition of the Environment—and Its Neglect—in Various Classics

Abstract

Abstract. Labor and capital are usually considered as the primary factors of production, the costs of which are of utmost importance. In contrast, nature (including all natural resources), as the essential third factor, is disregarded. She is generally assumed to be always available, self‐regenerating, and to be exploited without long‐term costs. In other words, she is more or less viewed as a constant. Hans Immler's new treatise represents an important contribution in that he emphasizes the role and function of the natural environment, and its neglect, in the formulation of theories of value and their long‐term consequences on contemporary economic theories and on the person and society. This essay traces Immler's evaluation with extensive quotations—especially with regard to Physiocracy and the classical economists— of nature's role and function, or their neglect, in the formulation of theories of value through the writings of Aristotle, St. Thomas Aquinas, William Petty, John Locke, Adam Smith, David Ricardo, Karl Marx, and others—all dealt with in Part 1 of his book—and Francois Quesnay and the Physiocrats—the topic of Part 2.

Nature value: the evolution of this concept

“…The treatment of nature value by pre-classical, classical and neo-classical authors support the understanding of the evolution of human thinking about it. Karsten (1987) discusses some of the early authors' perspectives. Aristotle (384-322 BC) is cited as a starting point for value analyses.…”

“…The use value, i.e., the goods ability to satisfy a specific need, reflects man's interrelationship with nature and refers to its role in sustaining the human life. This relationship is expressed by people's desire to obtain goods from nature and by nature's ability to produce things for people (HOLLY, 2006;KARSTEN, 1987). The exchange value is related to the price of a good, or the quantity of money that people are willing to pay for this good.…”

“…agrotec., Lavras, v. 36, n. 1, p. 9-15, jan./fev., 2012 satisfy a human need. But Aquinas did not explain how this value was determined (SCREPANTI; ZAMAGNI, 2005), he only suggested that labor assumes an important role in the economic values determination (KARSTEN, 1987).…”

“…Petty saw nature (land) and labor as sources of wealth and value, components that would be used to measure the value of products (KARSTEN, 1987). He abandoned the subjective theory of value and reintroduced the concept of natural value, in which the commodities prices would tend to adjust to this value by means of small oscillations (SCREPANTI; ZAMAGNI, 2005).…”

“…François Quesnay (1694-1774), also a member of the physiocratic school, believed that the basic determinant of value was to be found in nature, which was a nature theory of value (KARSTEN, 1987). Quesnay used the same logic as Petty and Cantillon, adopting nature as the source of value, but with the predominance of a utility view, in which the role of nature was only to create value for humans, and there was no concern with the conservation and restoration of nature or the irreversibility of the human action.…”