«L'odiosità dei monopoli». Appunti sugli aspetti liberistici del pensiero di Rosmini

Antonio Rosmini’s interest for economic matters and political economy is well-known. This paper investigates Rosmini’s understanding of competition and the role of government in fostering economic development. Rosmini endorsed a positive view of free-market competition, seeing corporatist schemes as contrivances for the benefit of private interests vis-à-vis the common good. When it comes to international trade, Rosmini admitted in principle some qualifications for the application of the principle of free trade, endorsing a gradualist approach to achieve a condition of full free trade, like Adam Smith. However, the conditions he posed for the legitimacy of protection and tariffs are such that a case for a mercantilist read of his work can hardly be made. A closer look at his writings confirms the intuition of Pietro Piovani, who suggested in the 1950s that his understanding of laissez-faire is a cornerstone of this philosopher’s political thought.