orture and capital punishmentRehabilitation of criminal Economic Thought Critical of mercantilismGovt. has three duties:a) defense against invasionb) maintain civil orderc) sponsor public worksDid not call for harsher laws and more police to protect economic interestsBelieved in the "invisible hand" of free competition Francois Quesnay In France the Physiocrats advocated laissez-faire economics.Quesnay, advisor to Louis XV denounced mercantilism and stressed the importance of gold and silverInsisted that land was the only source of wealthShould be one tax on wealth derived from the land Adam Smith ScottishInquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (1776)Production comes from the workersLaissez-faire economics Conclusion According to Peter Gay there were 3 periods of the Enlightenment roughly :a) dominated by Montesquieu and Voltairebefore 1750 - set the tone of the movementb) Franklin, Hume, Rousseaumid-century fused anticlericalism and scientific speculation into a modern world viewc) Holbach and Beccariapolitics, social reform, legal reform, metaphysicsCriticism progressed by criticizing itselfEnlightenment centered on about twenty big names - but many more followersRoughly 1689 (Montesquieu born) to 1789 (Holbach died)First half were deists who focused on natural law; second half were atheist focused on utilityTimid political ideas were forced aside by more radical ideasAlthough mostly Parisian the thinkers were characterized by anglomania...
