The fable of the bees
by Bernard Mandeville · first published 1723
50% recommend50% neutral
Although never censored, Bernard Mandeville's anonymously published The Fable of the Bees; or Private Vices, Public Benefits came to be regarded soon after its publication in 1723 as the Enlightenment's epitome of immorality. As a naturalistic account of the mechanisms that condition human desire and of the unintended stabilizing social consequences of self-interested action, it has since been recognized as one the eighteenth century's most significant works of social theory. More sharply focused on Mandeville's social theory than any previous collection of his writings, this abridged and mod
Affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
Related books
2007–2021Voltaire's bastards
John Ralston Saul
Recommended by 9 · mentioned by 109 recommend · 10 mention9 recommend · 109 recommend
2013–2026The presentation of self in everyday life
Erving Goffman
Recommended by 8 · mentioned by 128 recommend · 12 mention8 recommend · 128 recommend
2008–2026Small Is Beautiful
E. F. Schumacher
Recommended by 19 · mentioned by 3519 recommend · 35 mention19 recommend · 3519 recommend
2008–2026The theory of moral sentiments
Adam Smith
Recommended by 16 · mentioned by 6316 recommend · 63 mention16 recommend · 6316 recommend
2008–2026Basic economics
Thomas Sowell
Recommended by 88 · mentioned by 12088 recommend · 120 mention88 recommend · 12088 recommend
2011–2026Debt
David Graeber
Recommended by 182 · mentioned by 303182 recommend · 303 mention182 recommend · 303182 recommend
2007–2026The Wealth of Nations
Adam Smith
Recommended by 92 · mentioned by 40592 recommend · 405 mention92 recommend · 40592 recommend
2007–2026The Black Swan
Nassim Nicholas Taleb, David Chandler
Recommended by 263 · mentioned by 666263 recommend · 666 mention263 recommend · 666263 recommend
…Beautiful - definitely about government, money, society. Economics as if people mattered. When I first read this, I thought the survival of the planet depended on people reading it. I found Mandeville's Fable of the Bees (1729) extremely funny and just as true. How everything depends on the sins of humanity. If we were all virtuous, economies would fall apart etc. Goes in detail into this argument and he's hard to argue…
on “Ask HN: What are some deep, mentality changing books?” ↗For a rebuttal to the critiques of excess found here, I recommend Mandeville's The Fable of the Bees (which Keynes references in the General Theory). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fable_of_the_Bees I do think it's worth contextualizing such debates about vice and virtue in the politics of the time.…
on “Imagining utopia–and condemning excess–during the Enlightenment” ↗> 5. Self-Interest Actually Helps Everyone See perhaps The Fable of the Bees as well, which was published a few years before Smith's birth: > In The Grumbling Hive, Mandeville describes a bee community that thrives until the bees decide to live by honesty and virtue. As they…
on “10 Enduring Lessons from Adam Smith” ↗…edit: Also La Rochefoucauld's Maxims should be very high on a list of exposés - it's a savage exposé of oneself. La Bruyere's Characters is a milder but still at-times-scathing exposé of the world. As is Fable of the Bees.. [0] http://metanoia-films.org/
on “Ask HN: Favorite “Adam Ruins Everything”-esque media? (blogs, podcasts, etc)” ↗Maybe i overread it but The Fable of the Bees is from Bernard Mandeville. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fable_of_the_Bees My two takes for a good historic understanding of economics are this Books: Economics of Good and Evil, Tomáš Sedláček https://www.amazon.com/Economics-Good-Evil-Economic-Gilgames...…
on “Ask HN: What are the must-read books about economics/finance?” ↗…carefully chosen rules. It's inevitable, so there's no much point getting upset about it. Why not turn it to largely positive ends? He wasn't first. Bernard de Mandeville was well ahead of him with The Fable of the Bees. I found Hayek enlightening to read: http://chester.id.au/2012/12/07/review-the-essence-of-hayek-...
on “Neil DeGrasse Tyson’s Eight Books Everyone Should Read” ↗…Evolution" Sam Bowles notes that the customs and economics of open source software have more in common with small-scale societies (99% of human history) than capitalism: The project that began with the "Fable of the Bees may be of even less practical relevance in the future. The reason is that the technologies and social interactions of the modern economy increasingly depart from these canonical assumptions. Direct noncontractual…
on “Utopia's scaffolding: What civilization took from us, I think we will get back.” ↗