"Socialism is not an economic policy for the timid":
Oskar Lange's theory of transition
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.69585/2595-6892.2026.1212Abstract
This article presents Oskar Lange’s theory of the transition from capitalism
to socialism and communism, providing a unified analysis of his two-part
text titled On the Economic Theory of Socialism from 1936 and 1937. The
narrative structure of this text reveals two figures of reader-interlocutor,
the “economist” and the “socialist,” who are merged as Lange progresses
with his argument. For Lange, the transition process must be driven by
courageous revolutionary determination, aware of the obstacles posed by
those interested in maintaining their privileges. The thesis defended here
is that On the Economic Theory of Socialism should be appreciated in its
integral unity, composed of the two main parts and the appendix, to be
recognized as a scientific-political treatise that marks an important step in
the initial stage of Lange’s project to synthesize the neoclassical framework
and Marxist Political Economy.
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