Reinterpreting The Keynesian Revolution

Various explanations have been put forward as to why the Keynesian Revolution in economics in the 1930s and 1940s took place. Some of these point to the temporal relevance of John Maynard Keynes's The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money (1936), appearing, as it did, just a handful of years after the onset of the Great Depression, whilst others highlight the importance of more anecdotal evidence, such as Keynes’s close relations with the Cambridge ‘Circus’, a group of able, young Cambridge economists who dissected and assisted Keynes in developing crucial ideas in the years leading up to the General Theory. However, no systematic effort has been made to bring together these and other factors to examine them from a sociology of science perspective. This book fills this gap by taking its cue from a well-established tradition of work from history of science studies devoted to identifying the intellectual, technical, institutional, psychological and financial factors which help to explain why certain research schools are successful and why others fail. This approach, it turns out, provides a coherent account of why the revolution in macroeconomics was ‘Keynesian’ and why, on a related note, Keynes was able to see off contemporary competitor theorists, notably Friedrich von Hayek and Michal Kalecki.

Taking its cue from a well-established tradition of work from history of science studies this book provides a coherent account of why the revolution in macroeconomics was 'Keynesian.'

This study examines the pioneering economic work by John Maynard Keynes, "The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money", and attempts to explain, with constant reference to the original sources, the complexity of Keynes' theories and the critical response they evoked.

This book examines the origins of the IS-LM model, one of the most significant innovations in the history of economic thought. It shows that the complete IS-LM model, including the equations and diagram, was produced by a group of economists who contributed their respective mathematical models of Keynes’s General Theory, including Champernowne, Reddaway, Harrod, and Meade, not to mention Hicks. Furthermore, the book discusses the implications of newly discovered archival material, including a previously overlooked document showing that John Maynard Keynes himself was the first to present the IS-LM model equations in a lecture he gave on December 4, 1933. It focuses on the implications of this material in terms of understanding the evolution of Keynes’s approach from 1933 to 1937, later interpreters of his General Theory, and the ongoing debate between Keynesians and Post-Keynesians on the nature of his system. Given the revelations it presents, this book will transform the profession’s understanding of the origins of the IS-LM model and modern macroeconomics.

Examining the emergence, in the inter-war years, of what came to be called 'Keynesian macroeconomics'.

The name of John Maynard Keynes is still the focus of political and economic controversy, and in the course of it, "what Keynes really meant" has suffered much distortion. This book represents a quest for the historical Keynes. It follows the story of an argument which arose out of the performance of the British economy in the period of depression between the wars and provides an account of Keynes's thinking in the years that led up to the General Theory, making it comprehensible to specialists and non-specialists alike.

The book is well researched and clearly written, and is a valuable account of the evolution of Keynes s ideas in the period under review. I recommend The Origins of the Keynesian Revolution as a scholarly study of the evolution of an important aspect of macroeconomics. Athol Fitzgibbons, Australian Economic History Review This is a very good treatment, adding to a growing literature on the development of John Maynard Keynes s monetary theory as it progressed from the Tract through the Treatise to the General Theory. Professor Dimand has given us a very good account of all this. His book should be used not only in history of thought courses but also in macro and money courses as an antidote, if nothing else, to the extremely limited view of Keynesian economics which most textbooks provide. Thomas K. Rymes, Journal of the History of Economic Thought Robert Dimand has written a superb book. . . . It is appropriate for use in classes on the history of economic thought and will serve as a nice supplement in a macroeconomics course. It would be perfect in a seminar on the development of Keynes s thought. Indeed, it would not be surprising if more of such courses were taught as a result of the publication of this excellent little book. Bruce J. Caldwell, Review of Political Economy This book traces an important and exciting chapter in the history of economic thought, with painstaking documentation from old sources and from previously unexploited, unpublished material. It does this with a sure and mature understanding of the intellectual and theoretical issues. Dimand is an excellent theorist himself. The book is beautifully and clearly written. James Tobin, Yale University, US Dimand s book will stimulate much discussion. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in the development of monetary and macroeconomic theory during the 1920s and 1960s. Robert Stanley Herren, Journal of Economic History Robert Dimand has written an excellent study of the evolution of J.M. Keynes s economic thought from its origins in orthodox Cambridge monetary theory through its early 1930s development leading to the General Theory. John B. Davis, Review of Social Economy