Markets, Money and Capital: Hicksian Economics for the Twenty First Century

Cambridge University Press, 1/8/2009
EAN 9780521873215, ISBN10: 0521873215

Hardcover, 466 pages, 22.9 x 15.2 x 3 cm
Language: English

Sir John Hicks (1904–89) was a leading economic theorist of the twentieth century, and along with Kenneth Arrow was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1972. His work addressed central topics in economic theory, such as value, money, capital and growth. An important unifying theme was the attention for economic rationality 'in time' and his acknowledgement that apparent rigidities and frictions might exert a positive role as a buffer against excessive fluctuations in output, prices and employment. This emphasis on the virtue of imperfection significantly distances Hicksian economics from both the Keynesian and Monetarist approaches. Containing contributions from distinguished theorists in their own right (including three Nobel Prize winners), this volume examines Hicks's intellectual heritage and discusses how his ideas suggest a distinct approach to economic theory and policy making. It will be of great interest to scholars and students of economic theory and the history of economic thought.

Between theory and history
on the identity of Hicks's economics Roberto Scazzieri and Stefano Zamagni
Part I. The Intellectual Heritage of John Hicks
1. Hicks on liberty Amartya Sen
2. An economist even greater than his high reputation Paul A. Samuelson
3. Hicks's 'conversion' - from J. R. to John Luigi L. Pasinetti and Ganpaolo Mariutti
4. Dear John, dear Ursula (Cambridge and LSE, 1935)
88 letters unearthed Maria Cristina Marcuzzo and Eleonora Sanfilippo
5. John Hicks and his publishers Andrew Schuller
6. Hicks in reviews, 1932–89
from 'The Theory of Wages' to 'A Market Theory of Money' Warren Young
Part II. Markets
7. John Hicks and the emptiness of general equilibrium theory Christopher J. Bliss
8. Hicks vs. Marx? On the theory of economic history Pierluigi Ciocca
9. Hicks's notion and use of fix-price and flex-price Marcello De Cecco
10. On the Hicksian definition of income in applied economic analysis Paolo Onofri and Anna Stagni
Part III. Money
11. Historical stylizations and monetary theory Alberto Quadrio Curzio and Roberto Scazzieri
12. Hicks
money, prices and credit management Omar Hamouda
13. Core, mantle and industry
a monetary perspective of Banks' capital standards Rainer Masera
14. A suggestion for simplifying the theory of asset prices Carlo D'Adda and Riccardo Cesari
Part IV. Capital and dynamics
15. 'Distribution and economic progress' after 70 years Robert M. Solow
16. Flexible saving and economic growth Mauro Baranzini
17. The economics of nonlinear cycles Piero Ferri
18. Perspective on a Hicksian non-linear theory of the trade cycle Kumaraswamy Vela Velupillai
19. Capital, growth and production disequilibria
on the employment consequences of new technologies Harald Hagemann
20. Capital and time Erich Streissler
21. Sequential analysis and out-of-equilibrium paths Mario Amendola and Jean-Luc Gaffard.

Review of the hardback: 'John Hicks, one of the greatest economists of the twentieth century, had a highly varied set of interests and viewpoints. This collection of essays, written by former students and others close to the corpus of this thought, gives deep insight into the broad theoretical syntheses which have had so much influence, together with the special nuances of Hicks's approaches and interpretations of economic reality. The depth and thoroughness of the writers' approaches lift this volume far above the narrow interpretations of Hicks's work.' Kenneth J. Arrow, Nobel laureate and Emeritus Professor of Economics, Stanford University