He was a lifelong student of political economy and was deeply influenced by the writings of Adam Smith, Jeremy Bentham, Thomas Robert Malthus and David Ricardo.
hiː wʌzɐ lˈaɪflɔŋ stˈuːdənt ʌv pəlˈɪɾɪkəl ɪkˈɑːnəmi ænd wʌz dˈiːpli ˈɪnfluːənst baɪ ðə ɹˈaɪɾɪŋz ʌv ˈædəm smˈɪθ, dʒˈɛɹəmi bˈɛnθæm, tˈɑːməs ɹˈɑːbɚt mˈælθəs ænd dˈeɪvɪd ɹɪkˈɑːɹdoʊ.