In our days, innumerable efforts are made to understand the development of the economy. That is why there is a branch especially dedicated to the study of this: the History of the Schools of Economic Thought. These schools, sometimes also called currents, have been around since ancient times, with thinkers such as Pythagoras, Aristotle, Plato, and Homer, authors of texts on the earliest known political and economic systems. However, it is not until the Middle Ages that, much more frequently, new economic ideals develop.
After several centuries and attempts, the so-called "classical economy" arrives, with a strong presence towards the 18th century. It is mentioned as the main author to Adam Smith, with the book The Wealth of Nations; authors such as Jean-Baptiste Say and David Ricardo should also be highlighted. She was known for her rejection of the free market and her methodology framed in empiricism. It was strongly influenced by early scientific developments, such as those of Isaac Newton. Despite this, it was widely rejected, remaining active until the 20th century.
It focuses on the analysis of how workers earn a given salary and how a nation's wealth originates and grows. His followers tended to view the future with remarkable pessimism, which earned them the nickname: gloomy science. Normally, the Marxist School is mentioned as part of classical economics, since its main precursor, Carl Marx, was the one who coined the term and took much of the bases on which this current was based.
