Economics in Antiquity and the Middle Ages
The economics in antiquity and the Middle Ages describes the doctrine of the house, which deals with "all activities and interpersonal relationships in this, the relationship between man and woman, parents and children, master and servants", and is thus a sub-area of ethics within the framework of ancient times and medieval philosophy . In contrast to the modern understanding of economics , in pre-industrial times the focus was not on economic aspects, but on the various personal relationships and areas in a house.
The teaching of the house
The term "house"
At the center of ancient and medieval economics is the concept of οἶκος ( Oikos , Greek: house). It designates both the material house in the sense of "building" and the community of persons within a household as well as the associated economic goods. The subject of economics was therefore very broad: it contained educational , ethical, sociological , medical , economic and agricultural aspects. The central position of the term "house", which is explained by the agrarian subsistence economy of pre-industrial societies, served as the unifying idea under which all the questions mentioned were considered.
- See also: Whole House
Communities of people in the house
Pre-industrial economics divides the house into three functional oppositions of people, whereby it is assumed that these oppositions are hierarchically ordered. However, it is precisely this inequality that creates a certain harmony and division of tasks within the house.
1) Man and woman: In both the Aristotelian and Christian traditions, the man was seen as the head of the woman, while the woman was seen as a weak, instinct-driven being who needed the man's guidance (see also: gender role ). In economics, on the basis of these role models, women were assigned the inside of the house as an area of activity: taking care of the family , food, clothing, etc. The man, on the other hand, was reserved for activities outside the home: looking after the family, doing business to exercise political rights and last but not least to represent the honor of the house.
2) Parents and children: On the one hand, this part of economics often includes medical considerations on issues relating to conception as well as the nutrition and treatment of children (e.g. breastfeeding , diaper changing). On the other hand, this community of people is treated under the aspect of upbringing and occupational or class- related training.
3) Lord and servants: The third of the domestic personal oppositions is that between the commanding (i.e. the master of the house and, subordinate to him, the mistress of the house) and the recipients of orders (depending on the rank of the house ministerials and vassals or simple servants and maids ). In the course of history, the Christian influence and the knightly ethos of the Middle Ages resulted in an upgrading of the command recipients in this group . If these were still slaves with Aristotle , the ensouled property of the master, in medieval times the element of voluntary "service" came to the fore.
Forms of possession and economy
In addition, premodern economics often deal in a fourth part with the various forms of ownership in a house and the possibilities of acquiring them. In the course of turning away from rural subsistence farming and turning to the forms of employment of handicrafts and trade in modern times, modern economics developed from this sub-area. This fundamental change in the socio-economic structure was accompanied by a reassessment of money and exchange: Aristotle saw the money economy as an illegitimate form of livelihood, but new orientations were already apparent in the late Middle Ages in view of the importance of long-distance trade at that time .
Historical development
Origins of economics in ancient times
Economic literature was a widespread genre in ancient Greece. It goes back to the Aristotelian three-way division of moral philosophy into a doctrine of the individual, a doctrine of the home and a doctrine of the state ( politics ). In addition to Aristotle, philosophers from all major schools dealt with economic issues: the Socratic Xenophon , the Academic Xenocrates , the Cynic Antisthenes , up to Epicureans , Stoics and the New Pythagorean Bryson .
Reception by Romans, Christians and Arabs
In addition to the relatively weak reception of economic ideas by Roman authors and some references in the Bible (especially in the Pauline letters ), it was above all Arabic science that took up and continued the economic tradition (based on Bryson's economics).
Economic literature in the Middle Ages
These ideas were made accessible again to Western scholarship via the Arabic tradition in Latin translation (especially by the important translation schools such as Toledo , Montpellier or Palermo ). The writings of Aristotle and his Arabic commentators, which were previously unknown in Europe, could be received again in the universities (with regard to economic thinking, especially at the University of Paris ).
In addition to this new access to old knowledge, economic and social changes also played a certain role in the upswing of economic literature. Population growth, increasing division of labor and the spread of new forms of economy led to a greater need to regulate the behavior and competencies of the members of a household.
The first of these medieval economic writings is the “Speculum doctrinale” , the third volume of the encyclopedic “ Speculum maius ” (1256) by Vincent de Beauvais . Around 1280 the Augustinian hermit Aegidius Romanus wrote his prince's mirror "De regimine principum" , which is also economically oriented. Finally, the largest and most comprehensive of these economic writings was the “Yconomica” (1348–52) by Regensburg canon Konrad von Megenberg , who describes the entire society in house categories.
literature
- Sebastian Albert: Wife and child in the "Yconomica" Konrad von Megenberg. A contribution to the worldview of the late Middle Ages. Würzburg 2007. ( digitized version ).
- Otto Brunner : New Paths in Constitutional and Social History . Goettingen. 2nd Edition. 1968.
- Sabine Krüger: To understand Konrad von Megenberg's economics . In: DA 20 (1964). Pp. 475-561.
- Otto Gerhard Oexle : Economy III. Middle ages . In: Basic historical concepts . Edited by Otto Brunner, Werner Conze and Reinhart Koselleck. Stuttgart 1992. pp. 526-550.
- Irmintraut Richarz : Oikos, house and household. Origin and history of household economics . Göttingen 1991.
Individual evidence
- ^ Otto Brunner: Hausväterliteratur. In: Concise dictionary of the social sciences. Volume 5, 1956, p. 92 f .; here: p. 92.
- ↑ See also Sebastian Albert: Wife and Child in the "Yconomica" Konrad von Megenberg. A contribution to the worldview of the late Middle Ages. Written term paper for admission to the first state examination for a teaching post at grammar schools in 2008. Würzburg 2007 ( digitized version ).