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Hayek on Aristotle: debris of a genealogy of modernity via Popper, Polanyi and Röpke

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  • Karp, Morris

Abstract

During his life, Friedrich Hayek drastically changed his evaluation of Aristotle’s role in the history of political and economic thought. Initially considering Aristotle as one of the forerunners of the liberal tradition, he then came to consider Aristotle’s philosophy as the source of collectivist thought. By examining both published and unpublished materials, this article shows that Hayek’s attack on Aristotle in The Fatal Conceit is authentic and puts Hayek’s affirmations on Aristotle in the context of his intellectual development. Hayek’s rejection of Aristotle can be related to his increasing emphasis on the abstract nature of the rules governing complex phenomena. However, this does not explain why Hayek felt compelled to take such a stance on an ancient philosopher who was highly esteemed in the school he belonged to. Hayek’s abandonment of the established view on the Aristotelian roots of the Austrian school can be better understood by considering the intellectual environment of his time. His eventual adoption of Popper’s point of view on Aristotle meant taking a stance against Polany’s democratic socialism and distancing himself from Röpke’s catholic conservatism.

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  • Karp, Morris, 2024. "Hayek on Aristotle: debris of a genealogy of modernity via Popper, Polanyi and Röpke," SocArXiv zp4wq, Center for Open Science.
    • Handle: RePEc:osf:socarx:zp4wq
    DOI: 10.31219/osf.io/zp4wq
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    3. Crespo Ricardo F., 2003. "Three Arguments Against Menger's Suggested Aristotelianism," Journal des Economistes et des Etudes Humaines, De Gruyter, vol. 13(1), pages 1-24, March.
    4. Caldwell, Bruce, 2000. "The Emergence of Hayek's Ideas on Cultural Evolution," The Review of Austrian Economics, Springer;Society for the Development of Austrian Economics, vol. 13(1), pages 5-22, February.
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