Includes bibliographical references.

Part 1. Nature and method of economics -- Part 2. Demand and supply -- Part 3. Recent Advances in the theory of resource allocation -- Part 4. Theory of market structures -- Part 5. General Equilibrium, welfare, and allocation.

Price theory, unlike Picassos, chamber music, or giraffes, is not to be admired for its own sake. Rather, it is something utilitarian, like hammers, screwdrivers, and wrenches, that makes up, in Mrs. Joan Robinson's apposite phrase, "a box of tools." The purpose of this book is to familiarize the student with these tools as they are used by the professional economist. This has long held true for traditional policy issues, such as poverty and income distribution, or the explanation of such otherwise mysterious values as the price of caviar. In recent years, however, the instrumental power of microeconomics has been demonstrated through applications to such social problems as crime and environmental pollution, and to the provision of public goods and human resource development.