Johannes Klant's seminal work rests upon the analysis of the logical structure of economic theories and addresses the long-standing problem of the nature of economics by making a distinction between basic theories and specific models. The Nature of Economic Thought brings together in one volume Professor Klant's seminal work on the philosophy and methodology of economics. After a brief description of the history of economics and its position as science, art and philosophy, the book offers discussion of the logical structure of economic theories, Milton Friedman's use of metaphor and John Maynard Keynes's methodology including his view on the intuitive process and his adherence to Marshallian instrumentalism. The final paper presents an historical analysis of the natural order ideal in economics and critically assesses the approaches of Max Weber and Karl Popper.

Always rigorous and cogent, the essays in this volume will be welcomed by the growing numbers of scholars interested in economic methodology and the history of economics thought.