What is the philosophy of economics for? Obviously, it should play the role of a discipline that binds philosophy together as global the science of the universal laws and principles of everything that exists and the economy as private economic science. However, in our opinion, the integrative function is far from being the only one in the set of all functions of the philosophy of economics, but only one of its functions.

But first - the definition of the "functions" of the philosophy of economics.

The functions of the philosophy of economics are those tasks that the philosophy of economics performs in the study of economic processes, and how, in what specific way it contributes to the development of economic science.

In total, in our opinion, we should talk about six functions of the philosophy of economics: ideological, methodological, critical (skeptical), cultural genetic, predictive and integrative.

Let's analyze them in more detail.

Worldview function

The ideological function of the philosophy of economics lies in the fact that the philosophy of economics has a significant impact on the formation of the worldview of both professional economists and the worldview of all business entities. The philosophy of economics here, as it were, lays a common knowledge base for a holistic vision of economic phenomena and processes, their grasp in a large-scale perspective.

Worldview can be defined as a set of views, principles and beliefs that fix a person's attitude to the natural and social reality surrounding him. In addition to worldview, one can also talk about attitude, mindset, mindset, but it is the worldview that is the highest form reflection of a person in relation to the world around him.

The economic worldview is the perception of economic reality through the senses, so to speak, externally.

Economic worldview - a holistic, total economic worldview; here the world of economic phenomena appears in its fullest form.

Economic worldview is a holistic, total economic worldview, when reason, rationality, rational analysis are connected to the senses.

The economic outlook is a set of views, principles and beliefs that determine the place of each subject in its system of relations with the economic world, and through it, with society and nature as a whole.

It is in relation to the economic outlook that philosophy, and in particular, philosophy of economics play a role theoretical core to form the theoretical views of economists, which are expressed in the economic theories and models they create. Naturally, not all economists in one way or another feel this "theoretical core" in themselves, some, perhaps, will generally deny the influence of philosophy on the formation of their worldview. However, such a “core” still exists, and at times it is even possible to directly establish a connection between the commitment of an economist to a certain philosophy and his sympathy for a particular economic direction.

Methodological function

The methodological function of the philosophy of economics is that the philosophy of economics plays the role universal methodology for economic science, borrowing for this the principles developed by philosophy as a whole. Further, these principles are tested in the entire methodology of the social and human sciences, and then directly in economic methodology, which, in turn, introduces them into economic science itself.

Here are some examples of such principles. It is possible that all of them will seem to someone too elementary, too simple, too "kindergarten" for the modern era, but this does not detract from their significance.

development principle.

This principle affirms the universality of development, evolution for the reality under consideration - relatively economically, we should talk about economic (economic) reality. The idea of ​​the universality of development began to take root in philosophy starting from the works of the ancient Greeks: Heraclitus of Ephesus, Protagoras, Gorgias, Socrates, Plato. Subsequently, the principle of universality of development for social reality was approved by Hegel and Marx, in contrast to the so-called "metaphysical" picture of the world, where development was either absent altogether or included only quantitative changes.

It was metaphysics that dominated economic science for a long period: the economy had to take on some ideal form (ideal trade balance, market equilibrium, etc.), and after that only quantitative parameters, not qualitative ones, were subject to change. Only Marxism, and later Keynesianism and institutionalism, managed to bring the principle of development into the picture of economic reality. The latest trends in economics, such as evolutionary economics and the new economic history, have further contributed to the introduction of the idea of ​​development into economics.

The principle of determinism and the principle of the knowability of the world.

These philosophical principles affirm the idea of ​​the universal conditionality of all phenomena and the idea of ​​their fundamental cognizability. Regarding economic phenomena, we can say the following: "There are no unknowable economic processes and phenomena, they are all interconnected and each economic process and phenomenon has its own reason."

The principles of determinism and the knowability of the world were already practically formed in classical science by the beginning of the 18th century, and economists borrowed them from philosophy without much delay or problems, and Newtonian physics and mathematics were a ready-made analogue for them.

The principle of simplicity.

This principle was implicitly proposed by ancient philosophers, and a more or less classical formulation was proposed by the English philosopher of the 14th century, W. Ockham, and that is why the principle was called "Occam's Razor".

"Occam's Razor": "Do not multiply entities beyond what is necessary." Otherwise: "Do not offer a complex explanation where a simple one is possible."

Or: “Of all explanations, first choose the simplest, and then look for the more complex.”

This principle (sometimes also called the principle of "economy of thought") has played and continues to play a huge role in the development of economic knowledge. For example, he requires economists not to be carried away by building too cumbersome economic models, not to go into speculatively ideologized schemes for considering economic reality, but, roughly speaking, to be simpler and closer to life.

The principle of practical feasibility.

The essence of the principle is as follows: "Everything is practically feasible if it does not violate the laws of nature and corresponds to the technologies of modern science." Such a “kindergarten” formulation cannot but cause bewilderment: are economists really not familiar with this philosophical principle?

Probably familiar. But economists clearly don't get it all. of great importance this principle (and for some reason they do not thank philosophy for this). For example, it is known that millions and billions are annually invested in medical and pharmacological science in the search for vaccines against incurable diseases (HIV infection, rabies, etc.). But who knows that such vaccines can be created at all and that they can exist in reality? No one knows this, but it is the principle of practical feasibility that comes to the aid of private corporations and the state investing in these projects: “Creating a vaccine against HIV infection (rabies, etc.) Maybe, because it does not contradict the laws of nature and corresponds to the technologies of modern science.” But will any of the serious investors give at least one dollar or a ruble to create a perpetual motion machine or to build a spaceship capable of moving at subluminal speed? No one, because the first contradicts the laws of nature, and the second is not achievable from the point of view of the technologies of science at the beginning of the 21st century.

Critical (skeptical) function

The critical (skeptical) function of the philosophy of economics is the orientation of philosophical and economic knowledge to constant skepticism regarding the truths produced by economic science. If economics is generally inclined to consider these truths absolute, then the philosophy of economics considers them for the most part as relative truths, which may change over time. If economics, like any “mature science” (according to T. Kuhn), in some way always dogmatic then the philosophy of economics believes that all the principles and laws of the economy should be subjected to criticism and critical analysis at any stage of its development, provided that it is rational criticism and rational parsing.

For example, discussing the problems of the philosophy of money a little higher, we pointed out that economics is accustomed to counting money eternal economic and social institution. But the philosophy of money, however, does not think so and boldly raises the question of the "end of money." Is it forever

Will there be money or will the social institution of money ever cease to exist? So far, only science fiction writers know the answer to this question, while economists and philosophers are only guessing and guessing ...

Culturogenetic function

The cultural genetic function of the philosophy of economics consists in the formation by the philosophy of economics of the theoretical and methodological foundations for constructing cultural values ​​and models for economic behavior.

In other words, the philosophy of economics takes part in the formation and construction of models and norms of economic behavior that present themselves as normative and spiritual values ​​and ideals of this particular society, i.e. what is called economic culture(or business culture). It is also clear that these values ​​and ideals must be high, those. contain an element spirituality- as the spiritual experience of mankind with a clearly expressed opposition between good and evil, high and low values, otherwise the culture-genetic function of the philosophy of economics itself can be misinterpreted.

predictive function

The predictive function of the philosophy of economics is that the latter tries to forecast, those. to extrapolate economic knowledge about the past and present to future events in economic life. At the same time, the philosophy of economics does not predict the future "blindly", but seeks to make a forecast scientific and to develop a philosophical and methodological base for both private and global economic forecasts: in this aspect, the prognostic function of the philosophy of economics merges with its methodological function.

Forecast should never be confused with prediction. Prediction is, so to speak, blind guessing,- this can be done not even by a scientist, but by any person. Prediction is always one outcome and the forecast is several possible forecasts (“scenarios”).

Any forecast always has a "forecasting horizon" - a time limit for a given forecast, while a prediction does not have it in principle.

True, it should be noted that the philosophy of economics, unlike, for example, economic forecasting (economic futurology), is not so rigidly bound by these requirements. In the philosophy of economics, some “freedom” of forecasting is quite acceptable, and at times “forecasting” is on the border with “forecasting”. The philosophy of economics is really the problem of economic science, but this philosophical problems, and nothing else. The flight of thought and imagination regarding the future in philosophy can be very high, and at the same time not necessarily bound by the rigid norms adopted in scientific forecasting.

Integrative function

Integrative function philosophy of economics is that it plays a role mediator (intermediary) between economics and other socio-humanitarian and natural disciplines, stimulates economic science to interdisciplinary interaction and interdisciplinary synthesis, helps to comprehend the results obtained by economic science as multidisciplinary,- i.e. as important not only for economists, but for scientists - representatives of other disciplines.

Interdisciplinary synthesis in economics can be carried out in three main ways: "economic imperialism", "economic vassalage" and "equal cooperation" .

"Economic imperialism" is a research method and type of interdisciplinary interaction in the social sciences, in which the main principle of economic science is reproduced: effective achievement of goals with a shortage of funds; the goals themselves can be different and are formulated by other social sciences: sociology, psychology, political science, etc.

Interdisciplinary interaction between economics and other social sciences of the type of "economic imperialism" has intensified since the 1970s and 1980s. XX century: and this is probably due to two main reasons: firstly, with the departure of economic science from the rigid canons of neoclassicism and the “second coming” of institutionalism as a direction that is much more “open” towards an alliance with other social sciences; and, secondly, with the desire of some social disciplines to become even more “positivized”, to formalize their conceptual apparatus and methodological tools for the natural sciences - mathematics, physics, etc., and also partly for economics in

economics models. Gender studies, demography, sociology, history, and political science were especially strongly affected by "economic imperialism". In the vast majority of cases, this influence should be considered as exclusively positive - both in terms of the impact on the evolution of economic knowledge itself, and in terms of the development of the discipline that is influenced by the economy. For example, in history, such an impact is associated with the popularity of the methodology of the "new economic history" school and cliometrics, in political science - with the emergence of "public choice theory", etc.

"Economic vassalage" is a method of interdisciplinary interaction between economics and another science (other sciences), when economic research is conducted in accordance with the methodological and theoretical foundations of another science (shi, other sciences).

"Economic vassalage" is the other side of "economic imperialism". If in the case of the latter, economics acts as an “aggressor” on the territory of a foreign science, dictating its own methods to it, then in the case of “economic vassalage”, another science imposes its theoretical schemes and methodology on economic science. Throughout its history, economic science has repeatedly been subjected to "raids" from other social sciences, and, it should be noted, such "raids" in certain periods of the development of economic thought were very successful and had a profound impact on the development of economic theory and methodology. For example, in German economic thought in the second half of the 19th - first third of the 20th centuries. economic discipline played the role of a "vassal" of historical science, in the Soviet social sciences (from 1917 to 1991) economic science had to play the role of a "vassal" of Marxist-Leninist philosophy and its political counterpart - "scientific communism", etc.

The third way of interdisciplinary synthesis can be conditionally called the way of "equal cooperation".

"Equal cooperation" is a type of interdisciplinary interaction, when economics and other social sciences equally influence the development of any research problems at the "junctions" between themselves, enriching and deepening both their own and others' theory and methodology.

The modern interaction between economics and sociology, as well as between economics and psychology, should be considered the most classic here. Despite the individual encroachments of "economic imperialism" and "economic vassalage", these two pairs of sciences still have interdisciplinary interaction in the first place according to the type of "equal cooperation". "Economic sociology" and "economic psychology" have achieved considerable success in recent years, applying an effective combination in the first case - economic and sociological theory and methodology, and in the second - economic and

psychological theory and methodology. The “equal cooperation” of economic and historical sciences, economic science and gender studies, economic science and legal science should also be recognized as quite successful.

• Naturally, this cannot be done in a primitive, vulgar way. For example, in our textbook "Methods of Economic Research" on pages 112-115 there is a fragment of the reasoning of the American economist P. Crosser (Crosser P. Economic Fictions, M., 1962), where some well-known economists just make a vulgar attempt to correlate with each other their economic and philosophical outlook.
• The Soviet writer Vadim Shefner, in his fantastic story “The Girl at the Cliff”, has a little discussion on this subject, a reflection from the future, so to speak: “My story begins on the day when money was cancelled. ... In fact, nothing special happened that day. The fact is that the process of withering away of money has been going on for a long time. Money did not die suddenly - it died quietly .... Recently, they had more statistical significance than value. If you didn’t have enough banknotes to buy the thing you needed, you simply pulled out a sheet from your notebook and wrote “15 kopecks” or “3 rubles” on it and paid them to the saleswoman. Or they could simply ask for money from any passer-by, and he would give you the required amount and, without asking your name, went his own way ”// Shefner V. Girl at the cliff, M., 1991, p. eleven.
• Hereinafter: Orekhov A.M. Methods of economic research, pp. 294 - 296.

Attention to the philosophical problems of economics is associated with fundamental socio-economic transformations in our country, affecting the interests of all segments of the population, and, in addition, with the fact that global changes are taking place in the modern world in the field of the world economy, geopolitics and the socio-spiritual life of society .
The philosophy of economics has its own subject of philosophy (see: Samsin A.I. Fundamentals of the philosophy of economics. M., 2003.S. 17). It acts as a special kind of philosophical and economic theorizing. Based on general philosophical concepts and principles, this discipline is aimed at considering the foundations of economic life as one of the most important areas of human life and society.
Unlike economic theories that study specific manifestations of economic phenomena, the philosophy of economics focuses on the general problems of economic life, the essential aspects of economic phenomena and processes. The philosophy of economics is designed to give an idea of ​​the most important aspects of the economy, where the necessary material conditions for the existence of people are reproduced. We must not forget that any economic phenomenon can be viewed from different points of view. Take, for example, the basic category "property". It is interpreted not only as a purely economic phenomenon of alienation of a person from the means of production, but also as a legal relationship regarding the possession, disposal, use of property, property. From the point of view of the philosophy of economics, property is considered, first of all, as subject-object relations, as a factor influencing the main spheres of public life, the role and position of a person in society.
The analysis of economic realities is carried out on the basis of the application of philosophical methodology. Along with other approaches, including mathematical ones, the philosophical method considers the economy as a multidimensional and contradictory system. However, it is philosophy that sets the general guidelines for cognitive activity. In this sense, it acts as a general methodology of economic knowledge. Philosophical methodology develops theoretical means for the most complete reflection of the continuously changing economic reality, and the development of dialectical and logical principles of knowledge is carried out in close unity with the generalization of the latest achievements of specific economic sciences. And, ultimately, all this gives practical significance to the methodological function of the philosophy of economics.
Before proceeding to the presentation of the content of the philosophical and economic problems, it is necessary to determine the initial provisions, the subject and purpose of this discipline. The economic sphere is a complex, multifaceted system. It is part of the wider system of society as a whole. From the very beginning, it must be emphasized that the economy is of exceptional importance. Many thinkers note that it is she who forms the material basis of being. In the sphere of economy, the necessary means for human existence are produced, the values ​​of people's earthly life are created. The economy is an objective reality with which we constantly deal in everyday life, it is an indispensable attribute of our being. As G. Hegel noted in his time, it is the economy that is the foundation of civil society. Man has been trying to learn the essence and secrets of the economy for many centuries (See: Ivin A.A. Philosophy of history. M., 2000).
The philosophy of economics considers the ontological and methodological aspects of economics. This is a philosophical doctrine of economic reality.
We can say that the philosophy of economics is aimed at understanding the foundations of economic life as one of the most important areas of human life and society as a whole. Based on philosophical categories and principles, it reveals the essential aspects of economic phenomena and processes. The philosophical approach to economic life involves highlighting the fundamental trends and patterns of human relations with nature, on the one hand, and on the other hand, the relationship of man to man in the process of labor activity.
Unlike economic theory, which analyzes specific forms of economic relations, the structural elements of the economy, the philosophy of economics is focused on understanding the general, universal patterns of development of the economic and economic world. Her focus is on the fundamental issues of the nature of the economy, the trends in the formation of the material conditions of human life and society as a whole. The philosophical point of view also involves revealing the essence of human behavior and activity in the economic sphere. Thus, we are talking about the humanistic component of the subject matter of the philosophy of economics.
It should be emphasized that at all times people thought about such questions: How to survive? How to ensure welfare? What is the source of wealth? Why does wealth inequality exist? And over many other universal questions. All of them are of a "meaningful" nature, for they are devoted to the foundations of human existence. These are philosophical, social and ideological questions. Today, in a rapidly changing world, in the context of fundamental socio-economic transformations in our country, these problems are becoming topical. Modern man is concerned with understanding the general trends of socio-economic transformation. Of course, the complex philosophical problems of economics have been discussed before. Many judgments and points of view on this issue have been expressed. Probably never in the past have the philosophical problems of economics been so exciting and dramatic as they have been in recent years.
The philosophy of economics is a field of study of general, deep processes in the economy. This analysis is carried out on the basis of philosophical traditions. First, we are talking about the philosophical interpretation of economic knowledge.
In other words, this is the desire to identify and describe the actually existing structures of economic knowledge and their adequacy to objective realities.
Secondly, philosophy acts as a methodological basis for considering economic problems. Knowledge of the laws and categories of dialectics and a concrete historical approach to the elucidation of economic life are of fundamental importance here. An essential role in the analysis of the economy is played by the philosophical principle of consistency. It requires the discovery of the many different aspects of the subject, their unity, the disclosure of the elements of the structure. It orients the cognizing subject to put the idea of ​​integrity at the center of comprehension. In this regard, consideration of economic systems and phenomena involves their analysis in connection with other social systems (political, legal, political, religious, etc.). It is known that homogeneity in the description and evaluation of economic facts, as a rule, is one of the foundations of dogmatism. Often in practice, the passion for narrow approaches in explaining economic and economic phenomena leads to economism, the absolutization of economic points of view, and the ignoring of spiritual and social parameters.
The philosophical method, being applied in combination with other methods, is able to help them in solving complex theoretical and fundamental problems. There is probably not a single economic theory, the formation of which could not have done without the use of philosophical ideas - about causality, space, time, etc. The heuristic function of the philosophical method (dialectics as a method) shows that the role of philosophy in the development of economic theories and views is very significant , especially in relation to building hypotheses and scenarios for the future development of the economy. Without worldview concepts and principles, the progress of any science is impossible. The categorical apparatus of philosophy (“object”, “subject”, “systemic”, “development”, “determinism”, “necessity”, “law”, “structure”, “accident”, etc.) penetrate more and more deeply into private sciences , including economic ones.
However, it would be wrong to believe that the philosophical methodology of economic research is limited to dialectical materialist approaches. It is known that the influence of the methodological ideas of the German social theorist M. Weber is still great. He showed the role of value and cultural orientations in the economy, the maturation of the Western entrepreneurial spirit in the depths of Protestantism. Austro-American philosopher-economist
J. Schumpeter attached great importance to sociological methods and procedures in the process of economic analysis.
It should be emphasized that philosophical methodology cannot be perceived as a set of mandatory prescriptions for the economy. Philosophical methodology aims at considering the economy from various positions, highlights the main trends and driving forces of its development and functioning. Such an angle of view opens up rich opportunities for a deep knowledge of economic phenomena and processes.

14. Philosophy and economic thinking. The relationship between the categories of philosophy and economics.

The philosophy of economics is a consideration of the philosophical foundations of economic science. It includes the philosophy of economy, property, goods and money, economic policy, principles of distribution, consumer choice in society, the economic nature of bureaucracy, and business ethics. Philosophy of economics focuses on such issues as the problem of "value of price", which cannot be adequately disclosed without philosophical reflection. Social philosophers note that modern society is characterized by the highest manifestation of economism. As capitalism develops, values ​​and traditions that are not associated with profit and efficiency lose their meaning. The current state, a new stage in the development of capitalist relations, is distinguished by an even greater influence of the market with its purchase and sale, profit, and profit. Spiritual values ​​(conscience, duty, love, patriotism) are losing their role. Economism, with its cold calculation, rationality, destroys the very soil of spirituality. The lack of spirituality of an economic society is not a deviation or some kind of inferiority in organization and structure. Lack of spirituality stems from its essence as an expression of a selfish-consumer attitude towards the world.

I. Philosophy of Economics and Modernity

By the beginning of the 21st century in the most developed countries, a global economic society has formed, as well as a corresponding type of person - homo economicus. Socially organized egoism becomes the dominant form of life. The new stage in the development of society is characterized by the fact that calculation, purchase and sale from the sphere of material production and consumption have penetrated into other areas of life. All this suggests that there is a total commercialization of society and the sphere of people's personal lives. And in this process, a huge role belongs to the media as one of the most important social institutions that influence almost all areas of activity.

II. Features of the Philosophy of Economics in Modern Russia

The uniqueness of Russia lies in the presence of several advantages: a powerful scientific, technological and intellectual potential and the richest natural resources. These benefits should be linked into a single system to support economic growth. The market has a self-regulating property, that competition and freedom of entrepreneurship, private property liberate the economic initiative of people, promote economic growth. Considerations are also expressed about economic modernization as a result of the state policy to block the flow of money abroad. These paths are not so much of a purely economic nature as of a philosophical and ontological meaning. Since we are talking about the state and prospects for the development of our society. We are talking about being, the well-being of the population of Russia. The Russian economy is going through difficult times. The wrong redistribution of property, the growth of corruption led to the impoverishment of many sections of the population, to a sharp social stratification in terms of income. Under these conditions, a certain system of values ​​has developed. For the majority of financially disadvantaged Russians, the main benefit is the opportunity to survive, i.e. satisfy the most pressing needs. Now many scientists argue that the normal development of the economy in our country requires spiritual and moral foundations. In philosophical literature, spirituality is defined as the integrity of the mind, rationality, on the one hand, and morals, feelings, on the other. Experts note that in modern conditions there is a disintegration of spirituality. Moreover, this crisis process is manifested as a result of the expansion of the principles of rationality, the spread of imperatives of information. Mind, knowledge, science occupy a leading place in society, but the sensual-emotional component, the ability of people to empathize, to goodness lags behind. There is a so-called soullessness of the world and individual people. The philosophical approach involves the analysis of the social meaning of spirituality. The philosophy of economics has its own subject of study. It acts as a special kind of philosophical and economic theorizing. On the basis of general philosophical positions and principles, economic philosophy is aimed at considering the foundations of economic life as one of the most important areas of human life and society. The focus of the philosophy of economics is the nature of economic life, the essence of the side of economic phenomena and processes. The philosophy of economics is designed to give an idea of ​​the most important aspects of the economy, where the necessary material conditions for the existence of people are reproduced. The philosophy of economics considers the key role of man in the development and functioning of the economy. The analysis of economic realities is carried out on the basis of the application of philosophical methodology. Along with other approaches, including mathematical ones, the philosophical method considers the economy as a multidimensional and contradictory system. However, it is philosophy that sets the general guidelines for cognitive activity. In this sense, it acts as a general methodology of economic knowledge. Philosophical methodology develops theoretical means for the most complete reflection of the continuously changing economic reality, and the development of dialectical and logical principles of knowledge is carried out in close unity with the generalization of the latest achievements of specific economic sciences. And, ultimately, all this gives practical significance to the methodological function of the philosophy of economics.

The philosophy of economics is a sphere of philosophical knowledge about the content and essence of a person's economic life in the multifaceted plane of society and the humanistic aspect as a whole. "The philosophy of economics is also an analysis of the philosophical foundations of economic science, which includes the study of the philosophy of management and the main principles of distribution and the reasons for one or another choice in society, the economic nature of bureaucracy, the foundations of economic ethics and many other fundamental theoretical and applied aspects regarding the relationship" connection relation philosophy - economics ". The philosophy of economics also tries to analyze the categorical apparatus of the economy, to explore the cultural value of certain economic factors in the context of a particular historical era.

There is an opinion that the philosophy of economics is not a simple combination of philosophy and economics, philosophy in economics or economics in philosophy. The philosophy of economics is an independent branch of modern humanitarian knowledge. It widely and comprehensively uses the philosophical, economic categorical apparatus, simultaneously using its own conceptual terms, methods, and means. Therefore, the philosophy of economics is a kind of applied philosophical knowledge that studies the essence of the economy as a separate sphere of social life and a complex and multifaceted system of housekeeping.

At the same time, the philosophy of economics interprets the philosophical understanding of the content of a number of basic economic categories: "economy", "economy", "production", "labor", "money", "economic man", "freedom", "need", which, according to its essence and significance is wider than the scope of the economy. De-objectification of their content ensures the formation of general knowledge about the nature of economic activity, determines its place and role in spiritual life, morality, the human life world, that is, it contributes to the understanding of the human-measuring essence of the economy.

Note that the concept of "economy" has quite a few interpretations. In different historical times, the economy was explained as wealth, and as a social (national) economy, and as a cost, and as a kind of specific economic behavior. Usually the term "economy" functions in two meanings:

Economy, a combination of means, objects and processes used by individuals to satisfy their own needs by creating primary benefits, conditions and means of subsistence with the help of labor;

The science of the economy and the means of its management, the relationship between people in the process of production and consumption, the exchange of goods and services.

Speaking about the etymology of this word, we note that the term "economy" comes from the Greek word "oikonomy" (house, law), which meant the rules of housekeeping. Most likely, the Greek thinker Aristotle first began to develop the basic principles of oikonomy by studying and analyzing such phenomena as the division of labor, exchange, money, and value. It was his concept that for quite a long time determined the nature and main directions of the development of economic knowledge. In particular, the philosopher popularized the idea of ​​natural economy, nevertheless, they functioned in the system of city-states. In this context, the policy as a harmonious association of households in his teaching arises, on the one hand, as the main economic factor, and on the other hand, as a means of ensuring the moral improvement and self-realization of its citizens. Such economy Aristotle called natural.

At the same time, Aristotle also addressed the fact of production for exchange (market), which, in his opinion, was unnatural, since market forms are not aimed at self-sufficiency and satisfaction of natural needs, but at exchange value and the accumulation of money. And this kindles the desires, passions of people, causes the destruction of the basic principle of life (abstinence, measures), makes people insatiable, since the volume of monetary wealth, in contrast to the possession of products necessary for life, does not have a natural growth limit. A form of economic activity aimed at accumulating money, Aristotle called "chrematistics)", which, in his opinion, disrupts the harmony of relations in the economy-polis-cosmos system.

Later, with the development of capitalist forms of management, a new type of economic thinking was formed for which money is the main tool for representing and analyzing wealth, and the cycle of wealth itself is determined by the presence or absence of money. One of the first scientific forms of economic knowledge, political economy, comes to the forefront of public life. Political economy - is an economic doctrine of the defining laws of production, distribution and exchange of material goods in society at different stages of its historical development. The founder of political economy is the British scientist Adam Smith (1723 - 1790), who focused on the fact that wealth is not money or gold, but a product of labor, the most important factor in economic life and a factor in economic activity.

According to A. Smith, the main motives for the economic activity of people are needs and the exchange of products to satisfy them. In acts of exchange, it turns out that a measure that is fundamentally different in nature from needs determines the equivalence and difference of things. This measure is objective and does not depend on the moods and desires of people. The circulation of goods, money, wealth, Smith argued, occurs due to the labor invested in goods. Put on a scientific basis by A. Smith, political economy brought economic science to a new qualitative level. But at the end of the XIX century. some of its shortcomings and contradictions appeared, which made it impossible to solve the economic problems that were relevant for that time. In particular, with the help of the labor theory of value, which was the basis of political economy, it was not possible to explain the nature of the economy, its historical development, as well as the features of the economic process.

In search of new theoretical approaches to solving pressing problems, economics at the end of the 19th century. significantly changed its subject and its name. The term "political economy" gave way to the concept of "economy" or "economics". Economics is an analytical doctrine that studies the problems of the effective use of limited production resources (labor, capital, land, money, entrepreneurial abilities, knowledge), their management in order to produce goods and services and achieve maximum satisfaction of the growing material needs of people. Economics almost completely rejects the socio-moral component inherent in political economy, but produces a kind of mathematicized myth about the optimization search for the maximum productive effect with limited productive resources, focusing on taking into account the steadily growing needs of the population.

It sets one to think only about the rationalization of the daily managerial and self-management actions of consumers, producers and any other agents that make economic decisions. That is, unlike political economy, for which "labor" and "capital" are dominant, economics popularizes a new economic reality - a subject that is able to make economic decisions.

From the point of view of the new economic theory, the main goal of production and exchange is to maximize profits, the most complete satisfaction of the ever-increasing needs of people. This motivation is clarified by the operation of the law, according to which the satisfaction received by an individual from a unit of good decreases with an increase in the number of these units at his disposal. This means that all needs tend to be saturated. The application of the law of diminishing (diminishing) utility made it possible to improve the analytical apparatus for analyzing the behavior of an economic entity. Since the useful return from each subsequent unit of the good decreases, and the difficulties associated with its extraction increase (labor costs in the production process, other goods in the process of exchange), there must certainly come a time when a further increase in goods will cause not an increase, but a decrease in satisfaction. Such a situation can be described using mathematical means, and the possible definition of the utility maximization point to which the economic entity should strive. Thus, we can conclude that this concept has undergone a number of evolutionary transformations, where the philosophical and social view of the essence of a person’s economic existence fixes a dialectical contradiction in it, the solution of which provides the semantic value of the economic-value orientation of its specific economic behavior, prioritizing its own (subjective) , or public (objective) interests. And the use of terms generally accepted in philosophy, determine the structural sections of philosophical knowledge - ontology, epistemology, axiology, allows you to build the appropriate structure of the philosophy of economics.

Thus, economic ontology (understanding the objective nature of economic existence) analyzes the attitude of a person, social and individual consciousness, to the problem of the correlation between planned and market management of economic affairs. At the same time, in the philosophy of economics, there is a strong theoretical opposition to market economic thinking - not only a sharp criticism of the shortcomings of spontaneous market mechanisms, but also a denial of the positive purpose of the market. Critics of the market argue their position by the fact that it causes a predatory attitude towards natural resources, separates people, devalues ​​the human person (the labor market as a public space for production competitors). Therefore, the subject of philosophical analysis of economic reality is the identification of positive and negative trends in the functioning of economic structures, mechanisms (market, entrepreneurship, competition of systems, risks, "ideology" of profit).

Economic epistemology (knowledge of the essence of varieties, functions of the economy) closely interacts with philosophical and economic forecastology and the theory of economic practice (praxeology). Thus, the philosophy of economics fulfills its methodological role in relation to specific economic disciplines, including management and marketing, which should teach people not only effective, in terms of income, but also socially true ways of managing. The problem of truth is central in philosophy, primarily in its epistemological (epistemological) part.

It should be noted that one of the main concepts of the modern philosophy of economics is the ethization of economic problems, enriching the understanding of the effectiveness of entrepreneurial activity with value content (public good, justice, dignity, honesty, decency, freedom). Indicative in this respect are the works of the German professor P. Kozlowski(born 1952), in which he analyzes the relationship between absolute moral standards and economic efficiency. According to him, the purely pragmatic aspirations of economic man (homo economicus) not only do not contribute, but even threaten the establishment of social equilibrium. Therefore, reasoning about economic feasibility needs to be supplemented by the requirements of the socio-ethical order - social protection, equality of opportunity. A market economy must take into account the norms of deontological ethics - a section of ethics that deals with the problems of debt and moral requirements. In this sense, the market and competition cannot be interpreted as a means of creating the best of all possible material worlds. A market economy does not mean that market relations should reign throughout society. The point is that the functioning of a market economy should not cause the inevitability of a market culture, education, art, politics.

Also, some researchers point to the limitations of the latest theoretical economy, drawing attention to its division into separate "segments", "zones", which gives rise to various contradictions of knowledge. Interests in superficial interconnections and relationships, underestimation of the deep essential spheres of economic existence, makes it impossible, in their opinion, to see a real integral economic system, and an excessive global mathematical interpretation of the object of knowledge takes the eye away from its economic nature, causes it to be perceived as a virtual reality, which is connected with the risk of incorrect results.

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