Keynes and the European economy

Abstract:

We argue in this paper that Keynes was interested primarily in the world economy. We do not seek to diminish the innovative advances Keynes made in The General Theory; we instead want to expand the perceived scope of Keynesian economics. We make this argument by analysing Keynes's contributions at three points during his career: writing The Economic Consequences of the Peace just after the First World War, testifying before the Macmillan Committee at the outset of the Great Depression, and negotiating at Bretton Woods during and after the Second World War. We then show how international Keynesian analysis clarifies the economic problems of Europe today.