Biography
Alfred Marshall since childhood heavily to science with which he decided to associate life. He made an invaluable contribution to the economy, which allowed him to leave a trace in history and determine the direction of development of discipline for years ahead.Childhood and youth
Alfred Marshall appeared on July 26, 1842 in London. He was brought up in the family of a bank employee who was religious and differed strict, almost despotic character. Therefore, the child of Alfred was engaged in his student until late Night, because of what was weak and suffered because of overwork. He spent a little time with peers and was fond of solving chess tasks.
At the insistence of the father, the young man graduated from Merchant Taylors' School. First, Marshall threw to mathematics, but because of the experienced psychological crisis, it was forced to switch to philosophy, and then on ethics, which led to the passion of the economy.
He received a scholarship in St. John's College, where in 1868 he began to teach. During this period, the young man wrote articles on international trade and sought an increase in economic research.
Personal life
In 1877, a man married Mary Palei, who was his student in Cambridge. They lived together to the death of Marshall, but did not acquire children. There are no scientist information about other details of the personal life.Scientific activity
Alfred was among the founders of microeconomics. Its works are based on the principles of classical theory and marginalism, they contributed to the development and expansion of economic views along with the works of American John Beits Clark. In addition, the scientist stood at the origins of the neoclassical theory and was a representative of the famous Cambridge school.
In scientific research, Alfred sought to raise the standard of living of the working class, considered the influence of education on the value of salaries. This led him to the criticism of the works of Karl Marx, who argued that the competition factor is more significant than qualification.
The first book was the "economy industry", which Marshall created together with his wife. He tried to write in a simple language, understandable to most people, and placed mathematical calculations in applications for professionals.
Shortly before that, a man left the post of teacher at St. Ionna College and moved to University College of Bristol, where he read lectures on economics and political economy. During this period, he was engaged in improving the "industry economy", which later published in the form of a curriculum.
Then Marshall began work on the "principles of economic science", which he devoted almost 10 years of his biography. During this time, the scientist managed to be a teacher in Oxford, and then return to Cambridge to take the post of professor of political economy.
The work published in 1890 contained the main ideas of Alfred and made it a celebrity not only in England, but also in the world. "The principles of economic science" were translated into several languages and repeatedly reprinted, racing additions.
The key concept of the theory of scientist was the method of partial equilibrium. To determine the factors that affect demand and suggestion, a man offered to explore the market of a particular good, paying attention to the cost of production resources, the price of additional goods and substitute goods, the magnitude of the income of buyers and their needs.
Another achievement of Marshall became a model, which is also called a cross, or scissors. This is a graphic image on which the demand curves and sentences intersect at a point of equilibrium market price.
With age, the health of the scientist began to worsen, and he was forced to leave the university and stay at home. But Alfred continued to engage in the development of the economy, published the books "Industry and Trade", as well as "money, credit and commerce", but they are not so popular as previous works.
Death
The famous neoclassic died on July 13, 1924 in the house in Cambridge, the cause of death was weakened health. His grave is located on the parish cemetery under the Church of Ascension. Even after death, the man remained an influential figure in the economy and left the memory of himself in the few works and black and white photos.Bibliography
- 1879 - "Industry Economics"
- 1879 - "Pure theory of foreign trade and a net theory of internal values"
- 1890 - "Principles of Economic Science"
- 1919 - "Industry and Trade"
- 1922 - "Money, loan and trade"