Objective: Prepare class members to teach undergraduate microeconomics.

Structure: There are 10 class periods, each lasting 260 minutes. This schedule creates two problems: first, a 15 week semester is compressed into 10 weeks, making it necessary for us to work 50 percent harder each week than we would in an ordinary course; second, each class period is six times longer than the optimal class length (approximately 40 minutes), creating a major challenge for our attention spans. There are two components to the course:

1) Mock Orals. As preparation for the oral comprehensive, each student will answer one question in front of the class each class period. A list of topics will be handed out each week, from which the mock oral questions will be drawn the following class period; students will be asked one of the questions at random. In most cases students are responsible for locating source materials—these will usually consist of the following: Principles text; Intermediate Micro text; or the New Palgrave. Grading will be based on accuracy and conciseness.

2) Marshall Readings. Pages from Alfred Marshall’s Principles of Economics will be assigned for each class period. Each student has two responsibilities:

1. Notebook: Each student must keep a notebook, containing summary of and commentary on Marshall’s Principles. Summary need not follow a specific format—though it should be sufficiently detailed to enable the writer to contribute to class discussion. Commentary should minimally include comparisons between more recent Principles books and Marshall’s text. The notebook should be current at all times.
2. Discussion: Each student is required to make a 10 to 15 minute presentation during each class period, reporting on some portion of the assigned pages from Marshall. Each student is also responsible for contributing to the discussion of other students’ presentations.

Grading: The mock orals count for 30% of the final grade; the Marshall readings make up 70%. This last is broken down into three components: notebook (20%); class discussion (30%); and final exam (20%). The final exam questions will be essay.

Grew up in the London suburbs, did very well at school, particularly talented in mathematics. Entered St. John’s College at Cambridge 1862—in 1865 competed in the "Mathematical Tripos, Cambridge University’s most prestigious degree competition," coming in second place, ensuring election to a fellowship at St John’s. Lecturer in "Moral Sciences" specializing in political economy. By 1870 (age 28) he was already on track, developing the new science of economics. He held professorships at Bristol, Oxford, and eventually back at Cambridge where he held the chair of political economy from 1884 until 1908.

Demands of teaching and administration made writing difficult—only progress made during vacations, usually spent in the Italian Alps or the south coast of England. Ill health and excessively ambitious plans kept Marshall from accomplishing the work he intended. His wife was also an economist, and co-wrote his first book.

The Economics of Industry 1879

Principles of Economics 1890

Elements of the Economics of Industry 1892

Industry and Trade 1919

Money, Credit, and Commerce 1923

Principles of Economics went through eight editions, and is perhaps the most important book shaping modern economics. Marshall’s influence is primarily through this book, since he had relatively few students who were themselves important (Keynes and Pigou are two notable exceptions). He was hard to get along with, and many people were annoyed by his inflexibility. However, he had a clear vision of what economics should be, a vast knowledge of both economic theory and practice, was possessed of immense persistence, and held Britain’s most important chair of economics—all traits which elevated him to the most important economist of the early Twentieth century.