Keynes and Marx

Keynes was an elitist and pro-capitalist economist, whom the left should embrace with caution. But his analysis provides a concreteness missing from Marx and engages with critical issues of the modern world that Marx could not have foreseen. This book argues that a critical Marxist engagement can simultaneously increase the power of Keynes's insight and enrich Marxism.

Dunn explores Keynes's work in the context of the extraordinary times in which he lived, his philosophy, and his politics. By offering a detailed overview of his critique of mainstream economics and General Theory, Dunn argues that Keynes provides an enduringly valuable critique of orthodoxy, and develops a Marxist appropriation of Keynes's insights. The book considers the prospects of returning to Keynes, critically reviewing the practices that have come to be known as 'Keynesianism' and the limits of the theoretical traditions that have made claim to his legacy.

'Bill Dunn is probably the perfect person to write this book. I don't know of anyone else writing "critical" political economy who has such a synthetic grasp of both Marxian and Keynesian economics. The fact that his name will be on the cover will make people trust what is between them.' — Geoff Mann, Professor, Department of Geography, Simon Fraser University

'The worlds between Marx and Keynes are separated by many things: ideologically, politically and ideologically, but also epistemologically. Efforts have been made over the last few decades to theoretically integrate one of the two figures into the other. Or others have just underlined the absolute opposite of the two. Dunn certainly doesn't want to do either exercise again.' — Masereel Fonds