This book challenges the conventional view that monetarism is a necessary part of classical economics and shows, in an historical account of monetary controversy, that the framework upon which classical analysis is based suggests an alternative account of the inflationary process. A corollary of the argument is that the monetarist approach is a logically necessary component of neoclassical analysis and that any attempt to criticise that approach in a fundamental way must involve an explicit rejection of the conceptual structure of neoclassical economics.

Preface - PART 1: INTRODUCTION - Aim of the Inquiry - The Classical Framework - PART 2: METALLIC CURRENCY - Mercantilism and the Quantity Theory of Money - Classical Theory of the Metallic System - PART 3: CURRENCY AND CREDIT - Introduction of Paper Currency - Theory of the Fiduciary System - Theory of the Credit System - PART 4: CONCLUSION - Theory and Policy - Appendix: Price Trends in History - References - Bibliography - Index