Keynesian Revolution and Its Critics

Arguably the single most influential work of economics of the 20th century was John Maynard Keynes' "The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money". In this text Keynes set out his revolutionary new theory of the macroeconomy, in which the equilibrium level of output and employment was made a function of the level of effective demand. The practical effect of this theory was to provide a rationale for the policy measures to relieve unemployment which were then being advocated among economists. This study examines in detail the pioneering economic work and attempts to explain, with constant reference to the original sources, the complexity of Keynes' theories and the critical response they evoked.