Abstract

The interfaces between the formation of economic theory and other branches of knowledge are rarely explored in the history of economic thought. The article seeks to bring an original contribution in analyzing the debates that took place in natural philosophy and medicine in the context in which the physiological and natural thought of Quesnay (1684-1774) was developed. It is argued that the physiological approaches of Quesnay may be related to the Tableau Economique (1758-1766) in a very different sense from that offered by Foley (1973) and by most textbooks History of Economic Thought whereby the Tableau should be seen as an analogy of the circulatory system.

JEL Classification: A12; B11; B31.