Learning Basic Macroeconomics

CHAPTER 1

Introduction

Joan Robinson (1903 to 1983), professor of economics at Cambridge University, once remarked that you study economics to avoid being fooled by economists (Mankiw 2010). An economist, according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, is a person who practices economy. This definition suggests that anyone who is thrifty or uses material or nonmaterial resources efficiently is an economist, which would include everyone from good writers, who scrub unnecessary words from their articles and books, to truck drivers, who map out the shortest delivery paths.

Economics is a social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of commodities. Edmond Dantès, played by Jim Caviezel in 2002’s The Count of Monte Cristo ...