Looking for a quote on Keynes General Theory

Miscellaneous General
1

Hi,

I’m trying to find a quote that I’ve read more than once about Keynes General Theory (I’m 90% sure it was General Theory and 100% sure it was at least a book by Keynes).

It goes something along the lines of “This book is a terrible read, that is hard to follow, difficult to understand, and filled with inconsistencies and errors. In short it is a work of pure genius.”

I believe the quote is by someone still living, I thought possibly Robert Reich but couldn’t find the quote at all, let alone attributed to him.

Does anyone know this quote and/or who it’s by? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Ben

2

Paul Samuelson, about the General Theory.

Hazlitt quotes him the intro to his Failure of the New Economics [available for free here in pdf]:

It is a badly written book, poorly organized; any layman
who, beguiled by the author’s previous reputation, bought
the book was cheated of his 5 shillings. It is not well suited
for classroom use. It is arrogant, bad-tempered, polemical,
and not overly generous in its acknowledgments. It abounds
in mares’ nests and confusions. … In short, it is a work of
genius.3

The footnote says it’s from 3 The Development of Economic Thought, ed. by Henry William Spiegel
(New York: Wiley, 1952), p. 767.

3

Thanks Smiling Dave! That’s it!

4

Is the General Theory really that badly written, or do Austrians say that because they don’t like the content?

5

Is the General Theory really that badly written, or do Austrians say that because they don’t like the content?

It’s oftentimes very amibiguous, and I think that he sometimes contradicts himself, although I haven’t read the book very closely. I actually plan to before summer, but I plan to do a lot of things and they never get done lol.

6

yep, planning is so much easier than actually doing…

7

I have a a supercomputer running an equation that will plan all my actions for the next 70 years.

8

I actually kind of enjoyed it, and it wasn’t that bad. Not much in there I agreed with however. I do think Keynes may have had a point when he mentioned our “animal spirits.”

It was poorly written from what I recall.

9

The so-called “animal spirits” concept is the most elementary attempt at explaining an actor’s decision to engage in investment.

10

Keynes’s argument is a bit more complicated than “animal spirits”. See Garrison’s Time and Money.

11

The so-called “animal spirits” concept is the most elementary attempt at explaining an actor’s decision to engage in investment.

I know what the concept is. I find it somewhat convincing.