After receiving a $1.4 million advance for his textbook Principles of Economics, which is now required in Social Analysis 10: "Principles of Economics," Professor of Economics N. Gregory Mankiw is further proof that a market economy can make some people rich--very rich.

In addition to the advance Mankiw got, which is the largest ever for a textbook, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education, he can expect to see a handsome profit from sales of the book, which retails at $61.50.

According to The Chronicle, Mankiw's textbook is about to become "the next Samuelson", a reference to the current introductory economics bible.

The approximately 900 students who are taking Social Analysis 10 will also make a contribution to sales of the book.

Mankiw's text replaced Baumol and Binder's Economics: Principles and Policy, a textbook required in the class in past years.

Mankiw's book is highly popular nationally and closely follows the Social Analysis 10 curriculum.

According to Mankiw, the textbook has sold 30,000 copies since its August release, with five translations of the textbook in the works.

Daniel Altman '96, a teaching fellow for the class and a former Crimson executive, said that there were three main reasons for adopting the new textbook.

"First, it more closely follows the class than Blinder, both in order and in sequence," he said, referring to the text that was formerly used in the class. "It's also more concise--[Baumol and Blinder] was not incredibly successful as a teaching tool."

Mankiw said that he agreed to write Principles of Economics in December 1992 and had worked on it part-time until this August.

He attributed his success to the relative shortness of his textbook compared to other such economics textbooks, as well as to his emphasis on macroeconomics and international economics.

Mankiw's first book was an intermediate macroeconomics textbook.

"In 1988, I started teaching [Economics 1010b]," Mankiw said. "I figured, I might as well write a textbook to go with it."

"When Macroeconomics came out, it sold well, and so publishers started coming to me to ask if I was interested in doing a general introductory text," Mankiw said. "The idea of writing an introductory text was very appealing to me."

"When I was a first-year, I didn't have any idea I'd be an economist. My first-year economics course changed my life," he said.