Socialism and War

This volume of writings by the eminent economist documents his thought on socialism and war during the dark decades of the 1930s and 1940s.

Throughout the twentieth century socialism and war were intimately connected. The unprecedented upheavals wrought by the two world wars and the Great Depression provided both opportunity and impetus for a variety of socialist experiments. Socialism and War presents F.A. Hayek’s insight into these topics as it evolved over the course of decades.

Opening with Hayek’s arguments against market socialism, the volume continues with his writings on the economics of war, many in response to the proposals made in John Maynard Keynes’s famous pamphlet, How to Pay for the War. The last section presents articles that anticipated The Road to Serfdom, Hayek’s classic meditation on the dangers of collectivism. An appendix contains a number of topical book reviews written by Hayek during this crucial period, and a masterful introduction by the volume editor, Bruce Caldwell, sets Hayek’s work in context.

Volume ten in The Collected Works of F.A. Hayek, Socialism and War will interest anyone concerned with the ongoing debates about government intervention in the economy.