DM:TIH

“Death of a Metaphor: The Invisible Hand,” International Journal of Pluralism & Economic EducationVol. 4(1), March 2013, p. 15-29

SSRN Version

ABSTRACT

Models are representations of reality. They simplify and ignore many

complexities in order to focus on certain aspects. With constant and repeated use,

theorists sometimes confuse the model with reality. This leads to many types of errors. In

this article, we argue that the metaphor of the invisible hand has become deeply

entrenched in the ways of thinking about and framing of economic problems. This has led

to overuse and abuse of the metaphor. Why this happened, what harm has resulted from

it, and how it can be remedied is the subject of this paper.

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