ABSTRACT
The founders of modern economic science were fascinated by the cold analysis of the individualistic authors, without, however, sharing their deep pessimism about humankind and their distrust towards civil virtues. What more fascinated the first economists – from Smith to Genovesi – was the realism of the founders of the political science in describing society: the social scientist shouldn’t imagine the “ideal” man, but must describe and predict the actions of the man “as he is” (in Machiavelli’s or Mandeville’s words). These “uncivil” authors had grasped some aspects of the real dynamics of modern societies, and their realistic approach left their mark on the first modern scholars of the new market economy.
