Abstract

In this note we argue that Lars von Trier’s movie Dogville can be viewed as an illustration of a simple economy where one agent has only her body as initial endowment. The movie illustrates some interesting comparative statics of equilibrium allocations. It shows how life would be like in a world where, in the absence of constitutional or legal constraints, economic forces reign freely and raises some fundamental issues of voluntary exchange versus force that apply to a number of contentious issues in public debate. JEL codes: A20, D30, D51, D63, F13. Keywords: Dogville, general equilibrium, welfare theorems, comparative statics, international trade, child labor, prostitution, economics education.