Hamilton's Legacy and the Great Man Theory of Financial History

摘要

Although I think Hamilton is great, it should not be used to advance a great-man theory of history or let politicians claim that modern markets are attributable to their forebears. At a time when most people hold politicians in such low regard (Kessler 2013), I can easily envision politicians watching the musical and projecting their own importance onto the main character. I do not fault the musical for having a main character and focusing on his achievements. A musical starring an invisible hand would not be popular. Nevertheless, we can question enablers of politicians who want to overstate their importance in the creation of positive outcomes in the economy.