science

Société d'économie politique

Société d'économie politique is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Société d'économie politique rather than just read about it. In short: The Société d’Economie Politique (transl. Political Economy Society) is a French learned society concerned with political economy.

Key takeaways

Société d'économie politique belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Société d'économie politique to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Société d'économie politique from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Société d’Economie Politique (transl. Political Economy Society) is a French learned society concerned with political economy. It was founded in 1842 to provide a forum for discussion of free trade, a subject of violent debate at the time, and has continued to organize discussions on economic and social issues to the present day.

History The Société d’Économie Politique was founded on 1 February 1842 in Paris. It was created by the followers of Jean-Baptiste Say to provide an open forum for debate on economics at a time when there were violent arguments over free trade. The society was led informally by Pellegrino Rossi as president and Count Ferdinand-Charles-Philippe d' Esterno (1805–83) as secretary. The debates were very academic in nature, and the society dissolved after a few meetings. Members included Louis Leclerc, Jean-Pierre Clément, Hippolyte Dusard, Louis Reybaud, Louis Wolowski, Léon Faucher, Horace Émile Say (1794–1860), son of Jean-Baptiste Say, Théodore Fix, Charles Dunoyer, Michel Chevalier, Hippolyte Passy and Jérôme-Adolphe Blanqui. Three friends, Adolphe-Gustave Blaise (1811–86), Joseph Garnier (1813–81) and Gilbert Guillaumin (1801–64) decided to form a freer and more accessible society in which the sessions would be both enjoyable and instructive. It would meet once a month to dine and discuss political economy. This idea was accepted, and the first meeting of five people was held on 15 November 1842 including Blaise, Garnier, Guillaumin and Eugène Daire (1798–1847). The numbers grew with successive meetings, including those from the Rossi-d'Esterno group and others. The society was open to men with very different positions in life and diverse political views, most of them influential either through their position or their writings. They could meet on neutral scientific grounds to exchange views on subjects such as the functions of the state, land rents, commercial freedom, public finances, the Crédit Foncier, regulations and socialism. The central theme was always political economy. Until 1845 the society had no formal leadership, but each meeting had a president, generally Pellegrino Rossi, who chaired the discussion. In 1845 the society elected two presidents (Charles Dunoyer and Hippolyte Passy), two vice-presidents (Horace Émile Say and Charles Renouard), a secretary, who became permanent in 1849 (Joseph Garnier) and a quaestor (Gilbert Guillaumin). In 1845 it was absorbed by the Société des économistes. In 1847 this society changed its name to the Société d’Economie Politique. By 1852 there were about sixty members from the legislature, administration, industry, commerce, teaching, law, letters and contributors to the Journal des Économistes. Distinguished visitors to Paris were invited to the meetings. Émile Mireaux was a member of the Société d'économie politique in Paris. He served as its secretary-general from 1930 to 1937, then president from 1937 to 1940. He belonged to the young school that helped adapt the old orthodox doctrines to the modern economy. As of 2017 the society had almost 450 members, and included academics, business executives and senior civil servants. It continued to provide a forum for discussion of economic and social issues. Once a month the society organizes a dinner-debate at the Cercle de l’Union Interalliée, with a personality invited to present their views on a specific topic. Since 1846 the society has published the Annales d’économie politique, which contains papers and debates from the past academic season.

Leaders

Presidents included:

Publications

Notes

Sources

Illustrations

Société d'économie politique illustration

Société d'économie politique: Frédéric Passy (1822–1912), for many years president of the society — Frédéric Passy (1822–1912), for many years president of the society

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Société d'économie politique

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Société d'économie politique claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Société d'économie politique before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Société d'économie politique ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Société d'économie politique

In research: Société d'économie politique appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Société d'économie politique in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Société d'économie politique is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1842 establishments in France, Economics societies, Political economy, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Société d'économie politique outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Société d'économie politique in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Société d'économie politique means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Société d'économie politique out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Société d'économie politique in simple terms?

The Société d’Economie Politique (transl. Political Economy Society) is a French learned society concerned with political economy.

Why does Société d'économie politique matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Société d'économie politique?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Société d'économie politique.