Umberto Meoli
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Umberto Meoli (26 August 1920 – 17 May 2002)"Umberto Meoli; Obituary; The Register", in ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
'', May 31, 2002
was an Italian
historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...
of
economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...
, known as a maverick of the Italian Left who eschewed
Marxism Marxism is a political philosophy and method of socioeconomic analysis. It uses a dialectical and materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to analyse class relations, social conflict, ...
in favour of British pragmatism.


Biography


Early life

Meoli was born in
Padua Padua ( ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Veneto, northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Padua. The city lies on the banks of the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice and southeast of Vicenza, and has a population of 20 ...
, one of nineteen brothers; his father was a
pharmacist A pharmacist, also known as a chemist in English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English, is a healthcare professional who is knowledgeable about preparation, mechanism of action, clinical usage and legislation of medications in ...
from a small town near
Benevento Benevento ( ; , ; ) is a city and (municipality) of Campania, Italy, capital of the province of Benevento, northeast of Naples. It is situated on a hill above sea level at the confluence of the Calore Irpino (or Beneventano) and the Sabato (r ...
, and his mother was from Padua.


Education

In 1940, at age 20, Meoli began his service in the
Italian Army The Italian Army ( []) is the Army, land force branch of the Italian Armed Forces. The army's history dates back to the Italian unification in the 1850s and 1860s. The army fought in colonial engagements in China and Italo-Turkish War, Libya. It ...
fighting in
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, and, three years later, with the Resistance after the 1943 armistice between Italy and the Allied armed forces. As a result, Meoli was imprisoned by the
Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who, upon assuming office as Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister, became the dictator of Fascist Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 un ...
Fascist Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural soci ...
government, and spent several months in the Palazzo Giusti detention center in Padua. The Palazzo Giusti detention center was notorious for the cruelty of some Fascists in Padua during the
Italian Social Republic The Italian Social Republic (, ; RSI; , ), known prior to December 1943 as the National Republican State of Italy (; SNRI), but more popularly known as the Republic of Salò (, ), was a List of World War II puppet states#Germany, German puppe ...
. For example, Giovanni Gonelli, a barely
literate Literacy is the ability to read and write, while illiteracy refers to an inability to read and write. Some researchers suggest that the study of "literacy" as a concept can be divided into two periods: the period before 1950, when literacy was ...
jail keeper at Palazzo Giusti in Padua and a member of the Banda Carità, apparently enjoyed dehumanizing his prisoners by refusing their requests for food or blankets. The sentence of the Appellate Court of 8 January 1946 states that Gonelli would tell prisoners who asked for water to "piss and drink." There is no doubt that Meoli experienced such cruelty while imprisoned in Palazzo Giusti, and that this cruelty affected his thoughts.


Marriage and children

In 1961 Meoli married Rachel Toulmin, an Englishwoman and lecturer at Padua University. Rachel Toulmin was the younger sister of
Stephen Toulmin Stephen Edelston Toulmin (; 25 March 1922 – 4 December 2009) was a British philosopher, author, and educator. Influenced by Ludwig Wittgenstein, Toulmin devoted his works to the analysis of moral reasoning. Throughout his writings, he sought ...
, a historian and philosopher of science at the
University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...
.


Academia

Meoli was briefly a
Communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...
, and after graduating, he worked for a time in the
trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...
s ('' Camera del Lavoro'') in
Vicenza Vicenza ( , ; or , archaically ) is a city in northeastern Italy. It is in the Veneto region, at the northern base of the Monte Berico, where it straddles the Bacchiglione, River Bacchiglione. Vicenza is approximately west of Venice and e ...
, but he was soon at odds with the rigid militancy of organized labor. He found his vocation in the late 1950s, when he obtained a teaching post at the
University of Parma The University of Parma () is a public university located in Parma, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. Organized into nine departments, it is one of the oldest universities in the world. As of 2016, it had approximately 26,000 students. History During the ...
. It was during his time at ''Camera del Lavoro'' that Meoli became influenced by the
Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...
Harry Gordon Johnson Harry Gordon Johnson, (26 May 1923 – 9 May 1977) was a Canadian economist who studied topics such as international trade and international finance. Nobel laureate James Tobin said about him: "For the economics profession throughout the world ...
, one of the most active and prolific economists of all time. Gordon's main research was in the area of
international trade International trade is the exchange of capital, goods, and services across international borders or territories because there is a need or want of goods or services. (See: World economy.) In most countries, such trade represents a significan ...
, international finance, and monetary policy. In 1961, Meoli made a special journey to the
University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...
in
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
to meet Johnson. He quickly became a close friend of both Philip Andrews, A former President of the Royal Economic Society, Andrews was senior researcher at
Nuffield College Nuffield College () is one of the Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is a graduate college specialising in the social sciences, particularly economics, politics and sociology. N ...
at the time and Elizabeth Brunner with whom Meoli shared an admiration for
Alfred Marshall Alfred Marshall (26 July 1842 – 13 July 1924) was an English economist and one of the most influential economists of his time. His book ''Principles of Economics (Marshall), Principles of Economics'' (1890) was the dominant economic textboo ...
and a more skeptical view of
John Maynard Keynes John Maynard Keynes, 1st Baron Keynes ( ; 5 June 1883 – 21 April 1946), was an English economist and philosopher whose ideas fundamentally changed the theory and practice of macroeconomics and the economic policies of governments. Originall ...
. In 1961, Meoli published the first book in steady flow of books, in which would increasingly concentrate on the history of economic thought and ideas. By 1970, Meoli became Professor of the History of Economic Thought at Camera del Lavoro, and shortly afterwards was invited to occupy a similar chair at the University of Venice.


Italian academic circles

In addition to his
chair A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. It may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in vario ...
positions, from 1992 to 1998 Umberto Meoli was president of the Italian Association for the History of Economic Thought (''L'Associazione Italiana per la Storia del Pensiero Economico'', AISPE). Meoli always thought of himself as a man of the
Left Left may refer to: Music * ''Left'' (Hope of the States album), 2006 * ''Left'' (Monkey House album), 2016 * ''Left'' (Helmet album), 2023 * "Left", a song by Nickelback from the album ''Curb'', 1996 Direction * Left (direction), the relativ ...
. However, he early became convinced of the unacceptable limitations of Marxist economic theory, and his books and articles struck many of his leftist colleagues as a kind of
apostasy Apostasy (; ) is the formal religious disaffiliation, disaffiliation from, abandonment of, or renunciation of a religion by a person. It can also be defined within the broader context of embracing an opinion that is contrary to one's previous re ...
. Meoli's writings exhibited an ever-growing respect for British pragmatism, and the
economic liberalism Economic liberalism is a political and economic ideology that supports a market economy based on individualism and private property in the means of production. Adam Smith is considered one of the primary initial writers on economic liberalism ...
of
Adam Smith Adam Smith (baptised 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish economist and philosopher who was a pioneer in the field of political economy and key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment. Seen by some as the "father of economics"——— or ...
,
David Ricardo David Ricardo (18 April 1772 – 11 September 1823) was a British political economist, politician, and member of Parliament. He is recognized as one of the most influential classical economists, alongside figures such as Thomas Malthus, Ada ...
, and
Alfred Marshall Alfred Marshall (26 July 1842 – 13 July 1924) was an English economist and one of the most influential economists of his time. His book ''Principles of Economics (Marshall), Principles of Economics'' (1890) was the dominant economic textboo ...
. As an example of his unconventional approach, the figure of
Gustav von Schmoller } Gustav Friedrich (after 1908: von) Schmoller (; 24 June 1838 – 27 June 1917) was the leader of the "younger" German historical school of economics. He was a leading ''Sozialpolitiker'' (more derisively, ''Kathedersozialist'', "Socialist of ...
has been highlighted by authors like Francesco Traniello, who has indicated the importance that Schmoller, like Gustav von Schönberg, Adolph Wagner and
Albert Schäffle Albert Eberhard Friedrich Schäffle (24 February 183125 December 1903) was a German sociologist, economist, political economist, and newspaper editor. Biography Early years Albert Schäffle was born at Nürtingen in Württemberg on 24 February 1 ...
, among others, gave the ethical element of the political Economy, whereas Umberto Meoli associates the figure of Schmoller to those of Lujo Brentano and Karl Bücher as the most representative authors of the development of the Economic
Historiography Historiography is the study of the methods used by historians in developing history as an academic discipline. By extension, the term ":wikt:historiography, historiography" is any body of historical work on a particular subject. The historiog ...
. Eventually seen in Italian academic circles as a maverick and a great
Anglophile An Anglophile is a person who admires or loves England, its people, its culture, its language, and/or its various accents. In some cases, Anglophilia refers to an individual's appreciation of English history and traditional English cultural ico ...
, Meoli's leftist friends tolerated the irony, largely because Meoli would comment on their dismay with sudden eruptions of laughter."Umberto Meoli; Obituary; The Register", in ''The Times'', May 31, 2002


Works

*Umberto Meoli, ''Lineamenti di storia delle idee economiche'', unknown binding, UTET Libreria,


See also

*
History of economic thought The history of economic thought is the study of the philosophies of the different thinkers and theories in the subjects that later became political economy and economics, from the ancient world to the present day. This field encompasses many d ...


References

Lauer, A. Robert. "A Revaluation of Pasolini's ''Salò''." ''CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture'' 4.1 (2002):


Further reading

* Mark Bianchini,
Ricordi di Umberto Meoli (1920–2002)
'("Memoir of Umberto Meoli") {{DEFAULTSORT:Meoli, Umberto 1920 births 2002 deaths Writers from Padua Academic staff of the University of Parma Historians of economic thought Italian communists Italian economists 20th-century Italian historians Italian resistance movement members