dismal science
Carlyle's economic label
Dismal science is a disparaging nickname for economics, coined by Thomas Carlyle in the nineteenth century.
The label stuck because economic analysis often delivers gloomy predictions or emphasizes constraints and tradeoffs: The dismal science tells us there's no free lunch.
Economists themselves sometimes use the term with rueful affection.
- gloomyDark and dispiriting
- doom and gloomPersistent negative outlook
- marketVenue for trade
- supply and demandPrice-determining economic forces
- moneyCurrency for transactions
economics · scarcity · boom and bust · theory · Adam Smith · invisible hand · finance · Karl Marx · policy · classical economics · capitalism · political economy · pessimism · analysis · inflation · negative growth · fiscal · supply
dismal sciencethe arts
Creative and aesthetic pursuits
humanities · poetry · music · fine arts · belles-lettres
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