The Road to Serfdom - Definition and Overview

The Road to Serfdom is a book written by the economist Friedrich A. Hayek and originally published in 1944. The book is dedicated to "The socialists of all parties".

Hayek's central argument is that the goals and methods of socialism and economic planning lead to totalitarianism. Hayek states that countries such as the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany had already gone down the "road to serfdom", and that various democratic nations are being led down the same road.

Hayek discusses individualism, collectivism and economic control. The book examines the relationship between individual liberty and government authority, and argues that granting government control of the economy leads to disaster. One of the arguments regarding this is the Economic calculation problem.

See also

• Economic calculation problem

External links

• ISBN 0226320618 - The Road to Serfdom, 50th anniversery edition
• Mises.org The Road to Serfdom in cartoons (http://www.mises.org/TRTS.htm) - from a booklet distributed by the General Motors corporation.