19:
66:
argued that "If commerce were permitted to act to the universal extent it is capable, it would extirpate the system of war". Engaging in trade has been described as "civilizing" people, which has been related to virtues such as being "reasonable and prudent; less given to political and, especially,
163:
The doux commerce theory continues to be debated in the modern times. The question of whether commerce's impact on the society is net positive or net negative has no conclusive answer. Mark
Movsesian noted that "as Hirschman once suggested, the doux commerce thesis is right and wrong at the same
151:
This theory led to trade becoming associated with peaceful and inoffensive activities representative of the "civilized" West
European nations; which has however been criticized by later scholars as omitting the facts that much of the said "gentle" trade and resulting prosperity was built on
61:
wrote, for example, that "wherever the ways of man are gentle, there is commerce; and wherever there is commerce, there the ways of men are gentle" and "The natural effect of commerce is to lead to peace".
148:
offered the following critique of the doux commerce idea: that it is not commerce that civilizes humans, it is that humans are civilized through culture, which enables them to engage in commerce.
67:
religious enthusiasm; more reliable, honest, thrifty, and industrious". In the greater scheme of things, trade was seen as responsible for ensuring stability, tolerance, reciprocity and fairness.
108:(1736) has been described as endorsing the doux commerce theory. Out of those, Montesquieu has been argued to be the writer most responsible for the spread of this idea in his influential
136:
At the same time, even
Montesquieu and other proponents of trade from the Enlightenment era have cautioned that some social effects of commerce may be negative, for example
123:
339:
308:
763:
Dickey, Laurence (1 January 2001). "Doux-commerce and humanitarian values: Free Trade, Sociability and
Universal Benevolence in Eighteenth-Century Thinking".
86:. It became popular in the 17th century writings of some scholars from the Age of Enlightenment, and has been endorsed by thinkers like Montesquieu,
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tends to civilize people, making them less likely to resort to violent or irrational behaviors. This theory has also been referred to as
655:
The
Promise and Peril of Credit: What a Forgotten Legend about Jews and Finance Tells Us about the Making of European Commercial Society
128:
Hirschman is credited with summarizing the doux commerce argument for the modern readers and popularizing the term in modern discourse.
74:, a 17th-century French merchant, have been suggested as one possible origin but similar use has been traced earlier, for example to a
814:
304:"Do market societies undermine civic morality? An empirical investigation into market societies and civic morality across the globe"
114:(1748), and the theory is sometimes described as "Montesquieu's doux commerce." (although Montesquieu did not use the term itself).
57:
Proponents of the doux commerce theory argued that the spread of trade and commerce will decrease violence, including open warfare.
279:
733:
Christopher K. Clague; Shoshana
Grossbard-Shechtman; American Academy of Political and Social Science (1 January 2001).
82:. The basic idea that trade lessens the chance for conflict between nations can be traced as far as writings of
188:
141:
277:
Boettke, Peter J.; Smith, Daniel J. (2014). "The Theory of Social
Cooperation Historically Contemplated".
157:
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38:
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Harris, Colin; Myers, Andrew; Kaiser, Adam (2023). "The humanizing effect of market interaction".
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Hirschman (1977, 1982) reviews the history of an idea he dubs the "doux-commerce thesis."
102:. It has been discussed in their essays and literary works; for example Voltaire's poem
819:
396:
The World that Trade
Created: Society, Culture, and the World Economy, 1400-the Present
203:
83:
71:
250:
Movsesian, Mark (10 January 2018). "Markets and Morals: The Limits of Doux
Commerce".
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The
Passions and the Interests: Political Arguments For Capitalism Before Its Triumph
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has been credited as one of the chief proponents of the doux commerce theory.
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Commerce and Its Discontents in Eighteenth-Century French Political Thought
547:
Rousseau's Counter-Enlightenment: A Republican Critique of the Philosophes
117:
In modern scholarship, the term has been analyzed by the German economist
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87:
42:
517:
Religion and Trade: Cross-Cultural Exchanges in World History, 1000–1900
460:
Comparative Advantage in International Trade: A Historical Perspective
514:
Francesca Trivellato; Leor Halevi; Catia Antunes (20 August 2014).
17:
682:
The French Enlightenment and the Emergence of Modern Cynicism
574:
Kant and Colonialism: Historical and Critical Perspectives
164:
time: the market both promotes and corrupts good morals."
70:
It is not clear when this term was coined. Writings of
144:, or erosion of interest in non-commercial affairs.
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Culture and development: international perspectives
482:
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340:Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization
309:Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization
571:Katrin Flikschuh; Lea Ypi (20 November 2014).
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493:. Cambridge University Press. pp. 11–14.
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302:Schilpzand, Annemiek; de Jong, Eelke (2023).
8:
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712:. Cambridge University Press. p. 152.
685:. Cambridge University Press. p. 111.
658:. Princeton University Press. p. 343.
628:Montesquieu and the Discovery of the Social
366:Margaret Schabas; Carl Wennerlind (2008).
652:Francesca Trivellato (12 February 2019).
321:
520:. Oxford University Press. p. 101.
463:. Edward Elgar Publishing. p. 29.
426:Trekonomics: The Economics of Star Trek
393:Kenneth Pomeranz; Steven Topik (1999).
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604:. Palgrave Macmillan US. p. 34.
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598:Andrew Scott Bibby (29 April 2016).
252:William and Mary Business Law Review
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37:) is a concept originating from the
709:Empire and Modern Political Thought
679:Sharon A. Stanley (19 March 2012).
706:Sankar Muthu (17 September 2012).
457:Andrea Maneschi (1 January 1998).
14:
739:. Sage Publications. p. 68.
544:Graeme Garrard (9 January 2003).
22:French Enlightenment philosopher
777:10.1163/016738312X13397477910549
625:Brian Singer (31 January 2013).
487:Anoush Fraser Terjanian (2013).
601:Montesquieu's Political Economy
429:. Inkshares. pp. 173–175.
810:History of international trade
369:David Hume's Political Economy
1:
805:Early modern economic history
258:(2). Rochester, NY: 449–475.
399:. M.E. Sharpe. p. 141.
423:Manu Saadia (31 May 2016).
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577:. OUP Oxford. p. 99.
550:. SUNY Press. p. 17.
353:10.1016/j.jebo.2022.11.028
323:10.1016/j.jebo.2023.01.020
78:-era 16th century work by
631:. Springer. p. 279.
372:. Routledge. p. 65.
815:Enlightenment philosophy
47:commercial republicanism
280:SSRN Electronic Journal
189:Economic liberalization
142:conspicuous consumption
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158:colonial exploitation
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289:10.2139/ssrn.2173338
152:activities like the
39:Age of Enlightenment
214:Wandel durch Handel
184:Economic liberalism
80:Michel de Montaigne
179:Classic liberalism
53:Origin and meaning
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719:978-0-521-83942-6
692:978-1-107-01464-0
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611:978-1-137-47722-4
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557:978-0-7914-5604-0
527:978-0-19-937921-7
500:978-1-107-00564-8
470:978-1-78195-624-3
436:978-1-941758-76-2
406:978-0-7656-2849-7
379:978-1-134-36250-9
121:in his 1977 work
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825:Montesquieu
347:: 489–507.
154:slave trade
76:Renaissance
59:Montesquieu
24:Montesquieu
799:Categories
220:References
105:Le Mondain
785:0167-3831
316:: 39–60.
765:Grotiana
168:See also
132:Critique
88:Voltaire
43:commerce
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374:ISBN
260:SSRN
156:and
96:Hume
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318:doi
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285:doi
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