Lecture Notes in Microeconomic Theory

Ariel Rubinstein is professor of economics at Tel Aviv University and New York University. He is the author of Economics and Language and Modeling Bounded Rationality and the coauthor of A Course in Game Theory and Bargaining and Markets.

This book presents Ariel Rubinstein's lecture notes for the first part of his well-known graduate course in microeconomics. Developed during the fifteen years that Rubinstein taught the course at Tel Aviv University, Princeton University, and New York University, these notes provide a critical assessment of models of rational economic agents, and are an invaluable supplement to any primary textbook in microeconomic theory. In this fully revised and expanded second edition, Rubinstein retains the striking originality and deep simplicity that characterize his famously engaging style of teaching. He presents these lecture notes with a precision that gets to the core of the material, and he places special emphasis on the interpretation of key concepts. Rubinstein brings this concise book thoroughly up to date, covering topics like modern choice theory and including dozens of original new problems.

Preface vii Introduction ix Lecture 1. Preferences 1 Problem Set 1 10 Lecture 2. Utility 12 Problem Set 2 20 Lecture 3. Choice 23 Problem Set 3 41 Lecture 4. Consumer Preferences 45 Problem Set 4 58 Lecture 5. Demand: Consumer Choice 60 Problem Set 5 73 Lecture 6. Choice over Budget Sets and the Dual Consumer 75 Problem Set 6 82 Lecture 7. The Producer 85 Problem Set 7 92 Lecture 8. Expected Utility 94 Problem Set 8 104 Lecture 9. Risk Aversion 107 Problem Set 9 119 Lecture 10. Social Choice 121 Problem Set 10 128 Review Problems 131 References 147 Index 151