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контрольная работа Прочитайте и переведите все тексты. UNIT 1. ECONOMY ECONOMICS AS AN ACADEMIC DISCIPLINE Economics is as old as the human race: it is probably the first art which man acquired. When some cavemen went out to hunt while others remained to defend the fire or when skins were traded for flint axes we had economics. Adam Smith’s «The Wealth of Nations» was published in1776. Since that time the subject has developed rapidly and here are now many branches of the subject such as microeconomics, international economics and econometrics as well as many competing school of thou
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UNIT 1. ECONOMY
ECONOMICS AS AN ACADEMIC DISCIPLINE
Economics is as old as the human race: it is probably the first art which man acquired. When some cavemen went out to hunt while others remained to defend the fire or when skins were traded for flint axes we had economics. Adam Smith’s «The Wealth of Nations» was published in1776. Since that time the subject has developed rapidly and here are now many branches of the subject such as microeconomics, international economics and econometrics as well as many competing school of thought.
There is an economic aspect to almost any topic we mention of education. Economics is a comprehensive theory of how society works. But as such it is difficult to define. The great classical economist Alfred Marshall defined economics as «the study of I man in the everyday business of life».
This is rather too vague a definition. Any definition should take account of the guiding idea in economics which is scarcity. Virtually everything is scarce; not just diamonds or oil but also bread and water. How can we say this? The answer is that one only has to look around the world to realize that there are not enough resources to give people all they want. Thus when we use the word «scarcity» we mean that:
All resources are scarce in the sense that there are not enough to fill everyone’s wants to the point of satiety.
We therefore have limited resources both in rich countries and poor countries. The economist’s job is to evaluate the choices that exist for the use of these resources. Thus we have another characteristic of economics: it is concerned with choice.
Another aspect of the problem is people themselves; thy do not just want more food or clothing, but specific items of clothing and so on.
We have now assembled the three vital ingredients in our definition, people, scarcity and choice. Thus we could define economics as:
The human science which studies the relationship between scarce resources and the various uses which compete for these resources.
The great American economist Paul said that every economic society has to answer three fundamental questions, What, How, and For whom?
What? What goods are to be produced with the scarce resource: clothes, food, cars, submarines, television sets?
How? Given that we have basic recourses of labour, land, how should we combine them to produce the goods and services which we want?
For whom? Once we have produced goods and services we then have to decide how to distribute them among the people in the economy.
One alternative definition of economics is that it is the study of wealth. By wealth the economist means all the real physical assets which make up our standard of living: clothes, houses, food, roads, schools, hospitals, cars, oil tankers, etc.
One of the primary concerns of economics is to increase the wealth of a society, i. e. to increase the stock of economic goods. However, in addition to wealth we must also consider welfare. The concept of welfare is concerned with the whole state of well-being. Thus it is not only concerned with more economic goods but also with public heath, hours of work, with law and order, and so on.
BUSINESS IN AMERICAN SOCIETY
Americans have what might be called a love hate relationship with business. People tend to admire the drive and ingenuity of business people and the material benefits of their endeavors. However, some people harbor an image of the businessperson as a greedy manipulator who will stop at nothing in the never-ending pursuit of profit.
Anyone who has ever seen an episode of the American television show «Dallas» has glimpsed an extreme caricature of business’ image. The show depicts manipulation and dealings in the Texas oil industry, as the members of a wealthy Dallas family connive and scheme against one another and against other business rivals. Such extremes rarely occur in the reality of U. S. business.
On the other hand, works that cast business people as heroes have also been produced. The 19th-century author Horatio Alger wrote a series of popular books for boys that played endless variations on a «rags-to-riches» theme. Alger’s heroes were young men who gained success in business by virtue of hand work and frugal living. Those same virtues are widely hailed as a path to success today. The lists of best-selling books often include works by successful business people relating their personal formulas for getting ahead.
Business organizations in the United States have been eager to spread the message of free enterprise to new generations of Americans. Through a variety of means, they carry their message into the schools and onto the television screens of the nation. One of many activities sponsored by United States businesses is a nationwide program called Junior Achievement. Local business people help high-school-age «junior achievement» to organize small companies, sell stock to friends and parents, produce and market a product (key chains, perhaps, or wall decorations) and pay stockholders a dividend. The same young people act as company officers, salespeople and production workers. The idea is to give young people a deeper appreciation to the role entrepreneur-ship plays in a capitalist society and to give them experience in business practices.
THE PROBLEM OF POWER
The role of power in America life is a curious one. The privilege of controlling the actions or of affecting the income and property of other persons is something that no one of us can profess to seek or admit to possessing. No American ever runs for office because of an avowed desire to govern. He seeks to serve – and then only in response to the insistent pressure of friends or of that anonymous but oddly vocal fauna which inhabit the grass roots. We no longer have public official, only public servants. The same scrupulous avoidance of the terminology of power characterizes American business. The head of the company is no longer the boss-the term survives only as an amiable form of address-but the leader of the team. It is years since the United States has had a captain of industry; the brassbound officer who steers. No union leader ever presents himself as anything but a spokesman for the boys.
Prestige in business is equally associated with power. The income of a businessman is no longer a measure of his achievement; it has become a datum of secondary interest. Business prestige is overwhelmingly associated with the size of the concern which the individual heads.
Answer the following questions:
1. In what way can the advantage of long-term strategies turn to a disadvantage due to the political system of the country?
2. In a free market system the products reflect the wishes of the consumer. But if the wishes are harmful for his health (tobacco, alcohol) and the producers meet his ever-growing demand, will that be an advantage?
4. Competition brings out the best in products and the worst in people (David Sarnoff, former president of RGA). What does he mean by «the worst in people»? Doesn’t competition bring out some good qualities in people as well?
5. Discuss the main economic problem facing our society nowadays.
