Hesiod’s Works and Days and the Economics of Peasant Subsistence

 

 

Students of pre-modern and pre-capitalist societies have developed a variety of theories to explain the behaviors and organizations of peasant life, politics, and economy. Two competing theories emerging from the debate of village and peasant life in Southeast Asia (though borrowing heavily from studies of pre-modern Europe) approach the problem from an economic perspective, in particular the peasant’s attitude toward the creation of wealth for himself, his family, and his village. The ‘moral economy’ theory asserts that pre-modern/pre-capitalist peasant existence teetered on the edge of catastrophe and accordingly peasants adopted risk averse/safety first economic strategies that ensured at least subsistence but never promised significant gain. The ‘political economy’ theory asserts that the pre-modern/pre-capitalist peasant adopted a more ‘rational’ strategy in his economic behavior that involved risk-taking and attempts to maximize profit.

 

Hesiod’s Works and Days provides one of our best perspectives on peasant life and the peasant economy in the ancient world. Was Hesiod more of a ‘safety-first’ peasant or a ‘rational’ pre-modern/capitalist peasant? This paper will explore what light modern ‘moral economy’ and ‘political economy’ theories of the peasant experience might shed on Hesiod’s world.