Ludwig von Mises as Feminist Economist

Abstract

Could Ludwig von Mises be considered a feminist economist? This paper tries to answer this question, providing many cites and arguments developed by the Austrian economist. As is pointed, Mises was aware of women’s struggle. He was a great promoter of women’s development and freedom, as he proved in his life, and especially when he devoted one chapter of his book on Socialism to address the question of marriage and violence over women. Moreover, it is shown that epistemological and methodological foundations of praxeology are very compatible with feminist economics theory and claims. Even, the feminist theory could be enriched with many praxeological ideas in order to make it a more rigorous economic current. By demonstrating that Mises could be considered a feminist economist, it will be easier to continue developing an interconnected current: Austrian Feminist Economics.

Keywords: feminist economics, austrian school, Ludwig von Mises, epistemology, methodology

JEL Classification: B41, B53, B54