Amartya Sen: Economics needs a moral awakening

"Let us not forget that economics is a moral science," Emmanuel Macron told the Financial Times in a recent interview. This is one of the central thoughts animating the work of Amartya Sen, a Nobel prize winner in the dismal science but also a renowned political philosopher. Kathimerini contacted the great Indian thinker at his home in Boston and asked him about that quote from the French president and about whether, in the age of Covid-19, it is finally time for economics to widen its view of human behavior and of the ends of economic policy by reconnecting with moral philosophy.

"I remain an eternal optimist," the 86-year-old Sen replies. "I still believe that a much wider understanding can emerge. Policymaking reflects our level of understanding. We must realize in a deep way that not only economics, but society as a whole must reflect our moral values - we live together...