I agree, Greg. Thus the importance of the interpretation/justification/ exploration of the implications that must necessarily accompany a particular proposed geneology. But this still leaves the issue of the identification of, and relative weight attached to, a particular influence, be it a person, event, book, etc., not to mention sets of influences acting in combination. I guess it depends on whether one undertakes the exercise as a sort of parlor game, in which case it's no big deal, or a serious scholarly project. It should go without saying that where students depart from their mentors/teachers is at least as interesting and important as where they follow them. >I should think that one feature recommending the family >tree project is the very fact that it is open to alternative >interpretations, and makes inspires one to think about the >significance of history to the shape of contemporary ideas. The >fact that the task has no 'right answers' is one reason it is' >worth doing -- a provocative way to inspire interest in the history >of economic thought. > >Greg Ransom >Dept. of Philosophy >UC-Riverside ___________________________________ Mathew Forstater Department of Economics Gettysburg College Gettysburg, PA 17325 tel: (717) 337-6668 fax: (717) 337-6251 e-mail: [log in to unmask]