Classical Keynesianism, Monetary Theory, and the Price Level
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In my opinion there are two contending theories of the price level: that deriving from the Equation of Exchange in one or another of its forms, and that based on cost, especially wage, phenomena. Thus the debate must be resolved primarily between two major sets of ideas on the subject of inflation. In this light it would be a welcome event, if those Keynesians in economics, who long ago abandoned the various versions of the Quantity Theory of Money and have little truck with the cost theory of the price level, would at least re-examine their views on this subject. It is my deep conviction that most of the literature oriented toward what has been regarded as Keynesian thinking has had very little to contribute toward understanding price level phenomena despite superficial appearances toward the contrary. The importance of this assertion cannot be overstated for, in bulk, this literature is already voluminous and in teaching importance it represents the dominant modern fashion. Yet, in my opinion, on the fundamental problems of price level inflation and deflation, I believe it to be wholly barren and devoid of substance. Perhaps these essays will reveal the stark nakedness of the concepts in the price dimensions that interest all of us.—Sidney Weintraub
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About the author
Sidney Weintraub (1914-1983) was an American economist and one of the most prominent American members of the Post Keynesian economics school. He was the co-founder and co-editor of The Journal of Post Keynesian Economics in 1978. His views included criticism of monetarism and the neoclassical synthesis, and promotion of the tax-based incomes policy (TIP).
Born on April 28, 1914 in New York City, Weintraub studied for one year at the London School of Economics (1938-1939) and received his Ph.D. from New York University in 1941. He then worked at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York until 1943, when he was drafted into the U.S. Army. In 1945 he joined the faculty of St. John's University in Brooklyn, New York. In 1950 he joined the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania, and in 1957 he was awarded a Ford Foundation fellowship to travel to Europe. He taught at the University of Waterloo from 1969-1970, and from 1972-1973 he wrote a weekly column for the Philadelphia Bulletin.
During his expansive career, Weintraub gave over 500 guest lectures in the U.S., Canada, and Europe, and published 18 books, over 80 scholarly articles, and more than 50 popular articles.
He married Sheila Tarlow in August 1940, and he is the father of mathematical economist E. Roy Weintraub.
Sidney Weintraub died in Philadelphia on June 19, 1983, aged 69.
