Most of the classical economists already knew about utilitarianism...
So, if you want to look for the origins of a utility theory of value (or the
transition from a labor to a utility theory of value) you should return to
the scholastics.
But if you want to study the transition from classical to neoclassical
economics, I guess that what you have to do is to examine the marginal
revolution.
(These are old references but I think may be helpful: Robert M. Fischer, The
Logic of Economic Discovery. Neoclassical Economics and the Marginal
Revolution, Brighton: Wheatsheaf Books, 1986; or Mark Blaug, "Was There a
Marginal Revolution?" Blaug, Mark, The History of Political Economy, 4, 2,
Fall 1972, 269-280)
However, if I understood the kind of "move" or "transition" you have in mind
(which is a much broader and fascinating transformation that partly explains
Blaug's concerns about the issue) my suggestion is to do a careful reading
of Karl Polanyi's The Great Transformation: The Political and Economic
Origins of Our Time (1957, reedited in 2001 by Stiglitz)
(maybe you have done it already)
I think it is still the best and most complete reference to understand the
transition you referred to (with all the implications it involved, also for
both economic activity and economic analysis)
Then, I guess you could move to all the literature on the history of
consumption
All the best,
Olivia Orozco
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