Target Exam

CUET

Subject

Sociology

Chapter

Indian Society: Market as a social Institution

Question:

Adam Smith the famous political economist made an attempt to understand the market economy in his book:

Options:

The Wealth of Nations

The Free Market Economy

The Invisible Hand

Essay of the Nation

Correct Answer:

The Wealth of Nations

Explanation:

The correct answer is Option 1: The Wealth of Nations

The discipline of economics is aimed at understanding and explaining how markets work in modern capitalist economies – for instance, how prices are determined, the probable impact of specific kinds of investment, or the factors that influence people to save or spend. So what does sociology have to contribute to the study of markets that goes beyond what economics can tell us? To answer this question, we need to go back briefly to eighteenth century England and the beginnings of modern economics, which at that time was called ‘political economy’. The most famous of the early political economists was Adam Smith, who in his book, The Wealth of Nations, attempted to understand the market economy that was just emerging at that time. Smith argued that the market economy is made up of a series of individual exchanges or transactions, which automatically create a functioning and ordered system. This happens even though none of the individuals involved in the millions of transactions had intended to create a system.