John Mills provides a critical survey of the way economics has developed. He argues that the main goal of economics should be to show how to achieve a combination of economic growth, full employment, low inflation, avoidance of extreme poverty, and sustainability. From the ancient world up to the late 20th century, that it has failed to do so is neither inevitable nor accidental--It has failed because of a combination of intellectual error and the effects of social and political pressure, which Mills claims could and should have been avoided.
