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The Invisible Hook: The Hidden Economics of Pirates (2009)

por Peter T. Leeson

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2661399,237 (3.53)3
Pack your cutlass and blunderbuss--it's time to go a-pirating! The Invisible Hook takes readers inside the wily world of late seventeenth- and early eighteenth-century pirates. With swashbuckling irreverence and devilish wit, Peter Leeson uncovers the hidden economics behind pirates' notorious, entertaining, and sometimes downright shocking behavior. Why did pirates fly flags of Skull & Bones? Why did they create a "pirate code"? Were pirates really ferocious madmen? And what made them so successful? The Invisible Hook uses economics to examine these and other infamous aspects of piracy. Leeson argues that the pirate customs we know and love resulted from pirates responding rationally to prevailing economic conditions in the pursuit of profits. The Invisible Hook looks at legendary pirate captains like Blackbeard, Black Bart Roberts, and Calico Jack Rackam, and shows how pirates' search for plunder led them to pioneer remarkable and forward-thinking practices. Pirates understood the advantages of constitutional democracy--a model they adopted more than fifty years before the United States did so. Pirates also initiated an early system of workers' compensation, regulated drinking and smoking, and in some cases practiced racial tolerance and equality. Leeson contends that pirates exemplified the virtues of vice--their self-seeking interests generated socially desirable effects and their greedy criminality secured social order. Pirates proved that anarchy could be organized. Revealing the democratic and economic forces propelling history's most colorful criminals, The Invisible Hook establishes pirates' trailblazing relevance to the contemporary world.… (más)
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Mostrando 1-5 de 13 (siguiente | mostrar todos)
I wish I'd had Professor Leeson when I was in college. He clearly knows how to make a topic that could be (usually is) pretty boring. And he avoids making a usually quite interesting topic (pirates) boring.

So how is the pirate life related to economics? Well read the book to find out completely, but the short version is a lot. And when it is over you'll know a lot more about both pirates and economics.

The professor uses a classical model of economics to explain things and I imagine some who hold to some newer economic theories might not like that, but this book is not really for them, it is designed to bring an awesome understanding of economics by using the real world example of piracy.

The author never really diminishes the real crimes committed by pirates, but he does avoid harsh judgements. From an economic standpoint it makes sense, but it might feel like the murder, robbery, etc is acceptable.

Well worth the read. ( )
  Skybalon | Mar 19, 2020 |
Supercilious. This author simplifies and underscores every point until you wonder if his intended audience consists of mentally handicapped first graders. Sound economic theory and history, packaged in an irritatingly condescending manner. I would recommend this for middle school kids, but I suspect most kids get sick of being talked down to. ( )
  Abby_Goldsmith | Feb 10, 2016 |
The author makes much of the fact that pirates ran quasi-democratic organizations on their ships a hundred years before the Federalist Papers were written. This is not nearly as remarkable as he makes it sound. The average pirate crew only numbered about 60-70 people. Anthropology attests that quasi-democracies have since time immemorial been the rule rather than the exception in autonomous societies of this minuscule size. The problems of democratic organization in states with millions of citizens are of an entirely different nature.

The author's enthusiasm for pirate history is evident, but I think he greatly exaggerates the value of his "economic" explanations for pirate behavior and organization. He simply states logical reasons why pirate ships weren't ruled dictatorially, why they used their own flag, why they shared their loot equally etc. Most readers may not have thought of these reasons before, but they're quite obvious and they could be summarized in just a few paragraphs. The book becomes more and more boring as the author elaborates every simple point for 20-30 pages.

The final chapter "Secrets of Pirate Management" is a strange attempt to be humorous. It actually made me double-check if I had misread the name of the publisher, but no, Princeton University Press apparently approved even this garbage. The other chapters are alright for people who like pirates, but they aren't original or interesting from a social-scientific perspective. The organization of criminal activity has been treated from a much deeper theoretical perspective in David Skarbek's The Social Order of the Underworld.
  thcson | Oct 9, 2015 |
Impressive book; a must read for pirate fans and/or economics enthusiasts. ( )
  VincentDarlage | Jan 30, 2015 |
Very interesting book using economic principles to explain various aspects of pirate society. ( )
  sabs83 | Apr 6, 2010 |
Mostrando 1-5 de 13 (siguiente | mostrar todos)
Brisk, clever.
añadido por Shortride | editarThe New Yorker, Caleb Crain (Sep 7, 2009)
 
These fastidious, calculating pirates may have been a far cry from the romantic, mad buccaneers of legend. But Peter Leeson’s economical actors have an appeal all their own.
añadido por Shortride | editarReason, Katherine Mangu-Ward (Jun 1, 2009)
 
This engaging account is fun to read and full of humor, qualities not often associated with an explanation of economic theory.
añadido por Shortride | editarForeWord, Karl Helicher (May 1, 2009)
 
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Little Villains oft’ submit to Fate,

That Great Ones may enjoy the World in State.

—Sir Samuel Garth, The Dispensary, 1699

Let not his mode of raising cash seem strange,

Although he fleeced the flags of every nation,

For into a prime minister but change

His title, and ‘tis nothing but taxation.

—Lord Byron, Don Juan, canto III, stanza 14, 1821
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Ania, I love you; will you marry me?

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Charybdis herself must have spat them into the sea.
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Pack your cutlass and blunderbuss--it's time to go a-pirating! The Invisible Hook takes readers inside the wily world of late seventeenth- and early eighteenth-century pirates. With swashbuckling irreverence and devilish wit, Peter Leeson uncovers the hidden economics behind pirates' notorious, entertaining, and sometimes downright shocking behavior. Why did pirates fly flags of Skull & Bones? Why did they create a "pirate code"? Were pirates really ferocious madmen? And what made them so successful? The Invisible Hook uses economics to examine these and other infamous aspects of piracy. Leeson argues that the pirate customs we know and love resulted from pirates responding rationally to prevailing economic conditions in the pursuit of profits. The Invisible Hook looks at legendary pirate captains like Blackbeard, Black Bart Roberts, and Calico Jack Rackam, and shows how pirates' search for plunder led them to pioneer remarkable and forward-thinking practices. Pirates understood the advantages of constitutional democracy--a model they adopted more than fifty years before the United States did so. Pirates also initiated an early system of workers' compensation, regulated drinking and smoking, and in some cases practiced racial tolerance and equality. Leeson contends that pirates exemplified the virtues of vice--their self-seeking interests generated socially desirable effects and their greedy criminality secured social order. Pirates proved that anarchy could be organized. Revealing the democratic and economic forces propelling history's most colorful criminals, The Invisible Hook establishes pirates' trailblazing relevance to the contemporary world.

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