INTRODUCTION

This book is intended to introduce an absolute beginner to the basic elements of accounting. It deals with what might be called the ‘hard core’ of accounting. It is the core because the logical structure of the basic accounting statements and the underlying concepts of double entry book-keeping are the heart of what is unique to accounting as a technique and a discipline: for the rest, accounting is an eclectic subject, using relevant parts of many other disciplines, ranging from economics and statistics to law and social psychology. It is appropriate to describe it as the hard core for two reasons. Firstly, it is rigorous and logical. Secondly, it is often difficult to learn, mainly because it is usually very badly explained. This book is intended to remedy the latter problem, but many others have attempted this task and failed, so that there is no standard introductory text on the subject which commands universal respect: a more realistic ambition might therefore be to explain the subject a little more clearly than is done elsewhere.

It is a pity that the basic elements of accounting are not more widely understood, because they offer essential insights into the way in which economic activity is measured, and hence the way in which economic decisions are made.