Talk:Dismal Science

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[edit] Expansion request

Please help improve this article or section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. (January 2007)

According to Thomas Malthus:

the phrase was actually coined by the historian Thomas Carlyle in reference to an anti-slavery essay written by John Stuart Mill.

Is this true, and if so, which essay? -- Beland 03:21, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

It's not true. Mill wrote a response to Carlyle's essay, not the other way round. I'll alter the Malthus page. Paul B 11:11, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

eh... shouldn't the Expansion Request be part of the article itself? I'm too much of a newbie to be sure, but it seems pretty weird to request an expanded talk page...? --Oolong 11:06, 13 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Origin of the quote

http://www.economist.com/finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=8401269&fsrc=nwlbtwfree I thought Carlyle first anointed economics the “dismal science” because liberal economists insisted that American slaves be free to sell their labour in the marketplace like everyone else. It was a debate on labour economics if I'm not wrong. Kendirangu 11:59, 20 December 2006 (UTC)

The use of "another" in the first sentence is somewhat jarring. It feels like we've entered into the middle of a discussion -- or this paragraph has been pulled up from a later position.

No, it just means it's another name for economics - i.e. an alternative name. It may be jarring because of the subclause inserted between "another" and "name". Paul B 14:26, 23 January 2007 (UTC)