Keaton Beal

E-Portfolio Essay
My Renaissance
While taking my Business 1050 course, and reading Critical Thinking by Professor
Edward Engh, I was enlightened to many things. From the historical catalysts of the industrial
world, to many issues and personal struggles business owners of the past and present have to
balance and account for when operating a successful and long running business. I read from
excerpts from numerous philosophers and economists, some with differing opinions, but all with
very good points worthy of discussion.
The opening reading by Edward Engh was great for getting me excited for the rest of the
class. The majority of the readings were not from Professor Engh but rather from prestigious
historical figures. But, to preface these readings, Engh elaborates on the concept of critical
thinking. Being critical of ones own thought processes and being able to recognize fallacy and
rhetoric in our own thoughts as well as others. We must realize that we, as humans, are fallible
creatures who are destined to make mistakes. Thankfully, we are all unique and are good and bad
at different things. Critical thinkers can work together and feed off of each others strengths
while also working to strengthen and evolve our weaknesses. Critical thinkers are also efficient.
They rely on concrete information and trends to make educated decisions and do not read in to
any nonsense, which Engh describes as any superstitious or ego-driven belief that is not
rational and supported by solid evidence. This disregard for nonsense is one of the first major
catalysts for development mentioned in the readings.

The history of how market societies first came in to play was intriguing to me. Before
capitalism, there were nations that were not driven by wealth. In fact, the idea of profit and
wealth accumulation were deemed immoral in many early civilizations. It was important for all
members of the community to be able to afford life necessities, and to price essential goods in a
way that took advantage of the consumers was a damnable offense. This was in a time that travel
and relocation was much more difficult so citizens of nations were rarely enticed to leave their
current environment. Alexander the Great, of Greece, would create an empire that stretch across
Europe and into parts of Northern Africa. One of the greatest things Alexander the Great did was
connect the major civilizations of his vast empire with navigable trade routes for his travelling
vendors and merchants. Many of these ancient roads and outposts are still very much alive
today. All of a sudden, it was possible and for some even desirable to relocate to a more remote
part of the world, as it was possible to get life essentials from travelling merchants. The Romans
would follow suit and create and even greater empire. The Romans thrived for a long time but
their empire would eventually fall as well. Engh cites Edward Gibbon who theorizes the
Romans adoption of Christianity as its official religion helped in the disintegration, corruption,
and decline of the empire by demonizing motives for market competition and personal gain. This
historical evidence was used by our founding fathers who insisted on a separation of church and
state. Having a secular state, not run by religious doctrine, and instead fueled by rationality and
reason was the image they had for our country.
Human and animal behavior is very much a product of their environment. A small
collective of humans in a hostile or uninhabitable environment will prioritize preservation and
work as a group in order to better quality of life. However, when environmental situations a
preferable, they are likely to settle down and reproduce along with thinking more

independently/selfishly because they are no longer reliant on the rest of the group for their own
personal wellbeing. The parallel to a market society is that in a struggling society with little
luxury and limited supply of life essentials, there is likely to be a general attitude toward sharing
and distribution. When the market society is stable and flourishing, the demand for luxury goods
will increase and you will see competition rather than cooperation.
After the worlds first trade nations were established, there was a quality of life shift that
no longer required every citizen to learn how to produce food and clothing and other life
essentials. As long as you were proficient in creating a certain good or were masterful in a certain
service then you would be able to trade and barter for all your life essentials. Over time this
would lead to a less- skilled population overall because it was no longer vital for every family to
farm crops, or hunt, or knit, or bake/cook. This concept has snowballed all the way up to todays
society. Robert Heilbroner wrote a society whose existence hangs by a hair. This is especially
the case in modern society because such a small percentage of the population has the advanced
knowledge required to keep our advanced institutions functioning properly that if a significant
amount of administrators and executives in one branch of society wished, they could leave an
uneducated population without healthcare, or electricity, or jobs, or all the money they have
invested in the bank. Primitive cultures lived by the light of the sun and the fires they built. They
were always busy, learning new skills, because they had to be. In 2016, if the power went out
forever, how long would the average citizen just sit, wait, and do nothing? Then once the
realization that there was no more electricity set in, what kind of chaos would ensue?
Successful vendors in market societies were always looking for ways to maximize
profits. They needed a way to stay ahead of the competition. One major distinction between
products for consumers is the price. So in order to sell their products for less, they needed to cut

their price per unit during production. This led to the introduction of industrial firms. By
substituting human labor for mechanical labor they can be both more time efficient and money
efficient. Now the vendor can sell their products for less and still turn a profit on each item, and
because their goods are comparatively less expensive, they sell more than their competitors.
Greed and avarice among firm executives is not unprecedented. Maximizing profit is a
common and essential conversation for firm executives. Some try to find an altruistic balance or
profit and worker compensation while others focus almost primarily on the former. In early water
and steam powered firms, hirings of women and orphans were high because they were the
demographics you could pay the least. Ricardos iron law of wages states that There is no way
of keeping profits up but by keeping wages down. This law is difficult to dispute but is also a
philosophy of an entity without empathy. This type of philosophy will create wealth inequality.
So while incorporation of the iron law of wages may be ideal for the individual at the top, it is
harmful for the economy due to the new wealth going to the wealthy who is likely to stockpile
the currency rather than the working class who would circulate it back into the economy.
I loved this class for its emphasis on thinking for yourself. The world is a complicated
place with a lot of nuance. It is important to listen to detail, think about situations from outside
perspectives, and analyze your own personal feelings to discover whether or not your beliefs,
when put into action, will result in an outcome that your conscience is proud of. Business and
economics are a complicated balance of altruistic ideals, motivating tools, and profit maximizing
mechanisms. The fear of failure must be there to promote action and productivity, however we
must also have systems in place to help those who are less fortunate become active, successful
members of society.