The Talmud On Transitivity

Shlomo Naeh and Uzi Segal ()
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Shlomo Naeh: Hebrew University

No 687, Boston College Working Papers in Economics from Boston College Department of Economics

Abstract: Transitivity is a fundamental axiom in Economics that appears in consumer theory, decision under uncertainty, and social choice theory. While the appeal of transitivity is obvious, observed choices sometimes contradict it. This paper shows that treatments of violations of transitivity al- ready appear in the rabbinic literature, starting with the Mishnah and the Talmud (1st–5th c CE). This literature offers several solutions that are similar to those used in the modern economic literature, as well as some other solutions that may be adopted in modern situations. We analyze several examples. One where nontransitive relations are acceptable; one where a violation of transitivity leads to problems with extended choice functions; and a third where a nontransitive cycle is deliberately created (to enhance justice).

Keywords: transitivity; Talmud (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: B21 K40 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cdm, nep-evo, nep-hpe and nep-upt
Date: 2008-06-23, Revised 2009-09-04
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Persistent link: http://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:boc:bocoec:687

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