1. Aim: Identify thinkers and ideas that supported industrialization

2. The Philosophers of Industrialization
19th Century: Industrial Revolution opened a wide gap between the rich & poor
Business leaders believed that governments should stay out of business & economic affairs
Laissez Faire:
Refers to the economic policy of letting owners of industry & business set working conditions without interference
Policy favors a free market unregulated by the government
Stemmed from French economic philosophers of the Enlightenment
Argued that government regulations only interfered with the production of wealth
Philosophers believed that if government allowed free trade, then the economy would prosper 2

3. Adam Smith & The Wealth of Nations
Professor at the University of Glasgow, Scotland
Defended the idea of a free economy or free market
1776: Writes the Wealth of Nations
Claims economic liberty guaranteed economic progress
Result: Government should not interfere
Smith’s argument rested on what he called the three natural laws of economics
Law of self-interest
Law of competition
Law of supply & demand 3

4. The Economists of Capitalism
Smith’s basic ideas were supported by British economists Thomas Malthus & David Ricardo
Believed that natural laws governed economic life
Important ideas were the foundations of laissez-faire capitalism
Capitalism:
Economic system in which the factors of production are privately owned & money is invested in business ventures to make a profit
Laissez-Faire thinkers such as Smith, Malthus, & Ricardo opposed government efforts to help poor wages
Thought that creating minimum wage laws & better working conditions would upset the free market system 4