maynard keynes: an economist's biographyby d. e. moggridge

Maynard Keynes: An Economist's Biography by D. E. MoggridgeReview by: Johan DeprezJournal of Economic Issues, Vol. 27, No. 3 (Sep., 1993), pp. 991-993Published by: Association for Evolutionary EconomicsStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/4226745 .

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Book Reviews 991

References

Rosen, George. Peasant Society in a Changing Economy. Urbana, Chicago, and London: University of Illinois Press, 1975.

. "The State and Market in Industrial Development." Asian Development Review 10, no. 2 (December 1992): 43.

MAYNARD KEYNES: AN ECONOMISTS BIOGRAPHY. By D. E. Moggridge. London: Routledge, 1992. Pp. 941, xxxi. $45.00.

D. E. Moggridge's Maynard Keynes: An Economist's Biography becomes immediately the most authoritative biographical work on Keynes. It surpasses Roy Harrod's classic The Life of John Maynard Keynes in that Moggridge's work broaches certain topics left untouched in Harrod's book, it is more accessible to the person who is not a specialist on Keynes or on the history and institutions of the times, and it has the benefit of 40 years of perspective on Keynes's life and work. The unfinished, multivolume work of Robert Skidelsky is the only rival to Moggridge's work.

Moggridge describes in great detail the multifaceted career of Keynes. He deals with Keynes's academic writings while an un- dergraduate at Cambridge, his dissertation on probability, and his voluminous writings on economic theory and policy. Special con- sideration is given to The Economic Consequences of the Peace, The Treatise on Money, The General Theory of Employment, Inter- est, and Money, and How to Pay for the War. Moggridge examines Keynes's work in the Civil Service and the persistent formal and informal participation in government work. Keynes's journalistic and political activities are explored. His endeavors on behalf of corporations, Cambridge University and King's College, his finan- cial speculations, and his work in a variety of the branches of the arts are all covered in this biography. Moggridge also inquires into Keynes's personal life-his family, his friendships, his marriage, and his views and relationships with the myriad of people with whom he dealt in his professional life-as well as Keynes's own personality and idiosyncracies. In the end, one is left with a thor- ough picture of Keynes's multifaceted, rich, and productive life.

Part of what makes Moggridge's biography more accessible than Harrod's is that Moggridge takes less for granted about the reader's knowledge of the way in which institutions operated, of



992 Book Reviews

the historical context and the people involved, and of the economics of Keynes. This is reflected at the start of the book where Moggridge describes the context of Cambridge University- its structure, history, and workings-and gives an interesting description of Keynes's family-especially his parents. Similar ac- cessibility is provided when Moggridge deals with Keynes's days at Eton and Cambridge, his role in negotiating the Treaty of Versail- les, his World War II activities, and his role at Bretton Woods.

An important substantive advantage of Moggridge's biography over Harrod's is his treatment of Keynes's A Treatise on Prob- ability. Moggridge argues that Probability is a work that is central to understanding Keynes and his ideas, and that Harrod and others are wrong in suggesting that Probability should be seen as a curiosity that lies outside of the central stream of Keynes's im- mense river of work. Moggridge devotes a full chapter to Prob- ability in part to show the influence that the philosopher G. E. Moore had on Keynes's thinking. Keynes's critique of the econometrics of Jan Tinbergen and the link of this critique to Prob- ability are issues discussed by Moggridge but not by Harrod.

Moggridge also touches upon a variety of other topics that were dealt with by Harrod in an unsatisfactory manner and topics that have become important in the last 40 years. Some of these topics include Keynes as a conscientious objector and the interaction of Keynes and his Cambridge colleagues. The policy questions that Keynes dealt with between the two world wars and during World War II are also topics where Moggridge's treatment diverges from that of Harrod. The benefits of an additional 40 years of events and hindsight help, though Moggridge fails to point to the links between current policy debates and the debates that Keynes was involved with.

If there is a general flaw in Moggridge's book it is that he skirts around the links between most controversies on the economics of Keynes and his biographical story. While Moggridge is not timid in staking out positions on what is historically accurate, he shies away from arguing out the implications of his view of Keynes's vision for the opinions and policies that have existed in the last 40 years. Perhaps Moggridge takes few strong positions because doing so would inevitably put him in conflict with some of the schools of economic thought that claim some heritage from Keynes. Mog- gridge could have taken strong positions on the role of Probability in Keynes's later thinking, the origins of The General Theory, and



Book Reviews 993

the post-General Theory policy discussions and analyzed the implications of such positions for current theoretical and policy debates. Harrod, whatever his shortcomings, was not timid in arguing the implications of his view of Keynes's vision.

This book should be read by all who are interested in the life and work of Keynes. The book is rich with fascinating information and insight on a complex, multifaceted, and productive life.

JOHAN DEPREZ Texas Tech University

References

Harrod, Roy. The Life of John Maynard Keynes. New York: W.W. Norton, 1951.

Skidelsky, Robert. John Maynard Keynes: Hopes Betrayed 1883-1920. London: Macmillan, 1983.

. John Maynard Keynes: The Economist as Saviour 1920-1937. London: Macmillan, 1992.

EMINENT ECONOMISTS: THEIR LIFE PHILOSOPHIES. Edit- ed by Michael Szenberg. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992. Pp. 304.

This is a treasure trove of 22 immensely enjoyable autobio- graphical essays, commissioned and edited by Michael Szenberg, professor of economics at the Lubin Graduate School of Business, Pace University.

Each essay opens with an account of the author's personal life story, proceeds to a thoughtful articulation of the author's guiding philosophy, and concludes with each author's reflections on the development and current condition of economics. The assemblage of authors is balanced, ranging on the political spectrum from left to right; in economic orientation, the authors range from abstract mathematical theorists, to the humanistically inclined, to econ- ometricians. Yet virtually all write in a lively, lucid, and reflective style free of technical jargoneering. Some of the essays are primarily inspirational; some are primarily fascinating life his- tories; and some are outright amusing. Few are pontificial. Almost every essay offers memorable anecdotes. In its own way, almost



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