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Social Science Japan Journal

This book, by Professor Masayuki Otaki, a leading theoretical economist in Japan, is a comprehensive review of John Maynard Keynes’s The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money, henceforth The General Theory. It is also a timely policy assessment that severely criticizes Japan’s lax fiscal management and recent adventurous monetary easing from the viewpoint of The General Theory. Even though the subject matter is based on rigorous theoretical considerations, the author’s presentation is concise and easy to read, rendering the book suitable for readers from a wide range of disciplines, from academic to business, both inside and outside Japan. This book comprises two parts: I) reconsideration of The General Theory and II) derivation of an extended theory based on that reconsideration and applied to the current Japanese economy. Needless to say, The General Theory is an epoch-making work in macroeconomics and is regarded as a must-read classic. However, due to its length and complexity, students tend to shy away from reading the original version. Otaki’s Part I ‘reconsideration’ is an ideal partner text for anyone wanting to read the entire volume of The General Theory. Otaki is highly regarded for developing theoretical macroeconomic models with rigorous microfoundations based on Keynes’s insights. He also has published many articles on Keynes’s works. In this regard, it is no surprise for him to have written a review of The General Theory. Yet numerous commentaries on The General Theory have been published since its publication in 1936, including some by Otaki’s former teacher Hirofumi Uzawa. So what is the significance of Otaki publishing a new review of The General Theory now?

Keynes’s General Theory Reconsidered in the Context of the Japanese Economy