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Source link: http://archive.mises.org/9117/study-guide-to-human-action/

Study Guide to Human Action

December 17, 2008 by

It has been a work years in the making, but finally the Study Guide to the Scholar’s Edition of Ludwig von Mises’s Human Action, is available. Once you realize that Mises has a definite plan for the book — it is certainly not a Joycean stream-of-consciousness riff — then its 881 pages are not as daunting. You realize with each chapter, “Yes, now I see why Mises couldn’t really get on to Important Topic X until he first dealt with the material he just covered.” FULL ARTICLE

{ 6 comments }

Mark Knutson December 17, 2008 at 10:23 am

In the early chapters of HA, and I did find the study guide helpful to review what I had read and make sure I didn’t miss major points. Now I am using the study guide to prepare for the chapter of HA I am about to read.

prettyskin December 17, 2008 at 11:16 am

With such a mega-reading, the study guide is almost necessary.

Political promises, how the people just don’t learn from their mistakes. No true freedom and no true security provided by politicians, so help us the people cried.

Luke Morris December 17, 2008 at 2:52 pm

Finally reading “Human Action” now. About 150 pages in, and while it’s certainly not hard to follow, I can see where a study guide could be helpful. I could use it at the very least to help me see through occasions of Mises’ sometimes archaic vocabulary. This is definitely on my Xmas list.

Eric December 17, 2008 at 8:09 pm

Murphy is a great writer. I didn’t know of his Man, Economy, and State (rothbard) study guide, until I looked at this study guide. So, now I guess I have 2 books to read over Christmas.

But as a non-economist, whose so old that I only read for self knowledge and enjoyment, I have one slight little gripe about this and his MES study guide.

I would enjoy the questions more if there were a section with answers, where this would make sense.

For example, I was reading the MES study guide and there’s an interesting question which asks what Rothbard would say (like steak more than burgers, like burgers more than hot dogs, but one preference is greater than the other).

At first I thought Rothbard would say this was impossible since there are no units of “preferences” but then I changed this in my mind by replacing steak to, say, a new car and I think maybe a preference of a car to a burger might be stronger than a burger to a hot dog. So, w/o any answers in the back of the book, I’m left hanging.

That aside, I glad for both of these study guides.

E. Harding January 17, 2009 at 4:28 pm

I, myself personally believe that the study guide to Human Action is more useful for the student of economics to use than the study guide to Man, Economy, and State. The study guide to Human Action does not show the page number(s) on which to find the answer, but only tells the reader in which section of the book to find the answers and in what order the answers should be found.

It also has more questions (around 25-30 per chapter) unlike the MES study guide which has exactly 10 questions for every chapter (each chapter varying from 30-100 pages each), therefore encouraging a more thorough study of Human Action than of Man, Economy, and State.

Allen October 24, 2009 at 1:23 am

Eric, I’m with you. It’d be nice if the answers to the study questions were made available. There are several on MES which even after referencing many times back to the chapter, I still have trouble establishing a confident answer.

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