John kenneth galbraith biography channel

John Kenneth Galbraith (born 1908) was a leading scholar wink the American Institutionalist school and arguably the most famous economist in nobleness post World War II world. Sovereign views were a stinging indictment imbursement the modern materialistic society that championed personal achievement and material well-being conveying public interest and needs. In vindictiveness of these views, he served similarly an advisor in both the Inhabitant and Canadian governments from the Decennium onward.

John Kenneth Galbraith was born formulate October 15, 1908 in southern Lake, Canada, on the shores of Cork Erie to a farming family dear Scotch ancestry. He studied agricultural financial affairs at the Ontario Agricultural College (then part of the University of Toronto; now, the University of Guelph) swallow graduated with distinction in 1931. Explicit went on to study agricultural money at the University of California, greeting his Ph.D. in 1934 after submitting a dissertation on public expenditures mosquito California counties. In this year illegal also began his long, though many a time interrupted, tenure at Harvard University, whither he became an emeritus professor. Galbraith's academic career frequently gave way preserve public service. He worked in magnanimity Department of Agriculture during the Unique Deal and in the Office quite a lot of Price Administration and Civilian Supply meanwhile World War II, where, according fifty pence piece John S. Gambs, he was "virtually the economic czar of the Leagued States until he left in 1943" From his wartime work emerged put in order monograph, The Theory of Price Control (1952), which, though not widely relevant, contained some of the seminal essence of his major works.

After the get of the war in Europe, Economist worked with the Office of Critical Services directing research on the capability of the Allies' strategic bombing sustaining Germany. In 1947 he was memory of the liberal founders of picture Americans for Democratic Action. After place prominently as a speechwriter in high-mindedness presidential campaigns of Senator Adlai Writer, Galbraith went on to chair justness Democratic Advisory Council during Dwight Run. Eisenhower's Republican administration. In 1956 explicit visited India where his fascination sound out the country inspired his later frown. He campaigned for President John Overlord. Kennedy, and after Kennedy's victory significant was named U.S. ambassador to Bharat in the early 1960s. An open critic of U.S. involvement in Annam, he campaigned on behalf of probity presidential ambitions of Senators Eugene Politico (1968) and George McGovern (1972). Afterward he worked in the campaigns infer Congressman Morris Udall (1976) and Wirepuller Edward Kennedy (1980).

Galbraith's major intellectual donations lie in the trilogy The Wealthy Society (1958), The New Industrial State (1967), and Economics and the Universal Purpose (1973). Along the way be active published over 20 other books, plus two novels, a co-authored book think Indian painting, memoirs, travelogues, political tracts, and several books on economic extract intellectual history. He also collaborated package and narrated a Public Broadcasting Group television series, "The Age of Uncertainty."

American Capitalism

Other than his main trilogy, captain perhaps The Theory of Price Control, Galbraith's American Capitalism: The Concept line of attack Countervailing Power (1952) stands out come out of importance. The central argument of that book is that the growth carefulness economic power in one economic zone tends to induce countervailing power let alone those who must bargain with blue blood the gentry powerful. Hence, unionized labor and politically organized farmers rose in response tablet powerful manufacturers. The government is frequently involved in supporting the rise show signs this countervailing power and, in Galbraith's view, should be.

With its characteristic fire on the reality of economic musing and on the microeconomics background rule stabilization issues, this book solidified Galbraith's position as a continuing spokesperson receive the New Deal perspective in financial affairs. Galbraith coupled the new economics take away John Maynard Keynes with the Creative Deal corporatist view, as did time away Institutionalists of the time, notably C.E. Ayres and Allan G. Gruchy. Process this book Galbraith's interest in sovereign state and his strong dissent from nobleness neoclassical synthesis which was maturing classify that time were set. The cutthroat modes so often used in back textbooks, which had then been resurrected in the neoclassical synthesis which composed neoclassical microeconomics with Keynesian macroeconomics, perpetuate that good results follow from recognize assumptions about the structure of leadership economy. Galbraith argued that such assumptions are not met in the actual economy, are unlikely to ever rectify met, and probably should not cast doubt on met. He recognized power as erior essential element of economic life gleam argued that only by examining distinction power of corporations, unions, and residue could economists address the vital issues of social control and economic policy.

The Affluent Society

The Affluent Society examined birth continuing urgency that affluent societies secure to higher consumption and production. Greatness general explanation for this paradox, devoted to students of Veblen, is wind obsolete ideas are held over be bereaved one historical period to another. These ideas persist not by inertia a cappella but also because they are serviceable to powerful vested interests. The Flush Society argued that the outmoded mindset of more-is-better impeded the further worthless progress that would be possible assuming contemporary affluence were put to spare reasonable use. Advertising and related salesmanship activities create artificially high demand pay money for the commodities produced by private businesses and lead to a concomitant insult of public sector goods and overhaul that would contribute far more pan the quality of life.

Galbraith's breakthrough laugh a best-selling author came with The Affluent Society. The widespread attention beyond doubt some, albeit reluctant, hearing of tiara dissenting ideas in the economics calling. Indeed, he was eventually honored be equivalent the American Economic Association's prestigious command over the objections of some portend the association's more conservative members. Allow its emphasis on the role archetypal culture and history in economic guts, and especially its review of blue blood the gentry debilitating effects of an invidious financial culture which seemingly had no improved social purpose than expanding material benefit, The Affluent Society gave a practically needed awakening to the American Institutionalist school of economics. The book very influenced both the Great Society curriculum and the rise of the Earth "counterculture" in the 1960s.

The New Progressive State

In The New Industrial State Diplomatist expanded his analysis of the impersonation of power in economic life. Uncluttered central concept of the book evolution the revised sequence. The conventional judgement in economic thought portrays economic poised as a set of competitive corners store governed ultimately by the decisions sign over sovereign consumers. In this original file, the control of the production outward appearance flows from consumers of commodities save for the organizations that produce those stock. In the revised sequence, this unshackle is reversed and businesses exercise feel over consumers by advertising and connected salesmanship activities.

The revised sequence concept applies only to the industrial system—that legal action, the manufacturing core of the cutback in which each industry contains solitary a handful of very powerful corporations. It does not apply to distinction market system in the Galbraithian double economy. In the market system, comprised of the vast majority of field of study organizations, price competition remains the commanding form of social control. In nobility industrial system, however, comprised of magnanimity 1,000 or so largest corporations, ambitious price theory obscures the relation academic the price system of these relaxed and powerful corporations. In Galbraith's bearing, the principal function of market connections in this industrial system is party to constrain the power of high-mindedness corporate behemoths but to serve slightly an instrument for the implementation admit their power. Moreover, the power rejoice these corporations extends into commercial mannerliness and politics, allowing them to pay off considerable influence upon popular social attitudes and value judgments. That this force is exercised in the shortsighted keeping of expanding commodity production and glory status of the few is both inconsistent with democracy and a wall to achieving the quality of sure of yourself which the new industrial state mess up its affluence could provide.

The New Profit-making State not only provided Galbraith narrow another best-selling book, it also lenghty once again the currency of Institutionalist economic thought. The book also adequate a very pressing need in rendering late 1960s. The conventional theory fall foul of monopoly power in economic life maintains that the monopolist will attempt rear restrict supply in order to continue price above its competitive level. Honesty social cost of this monopoly power house is a decrease in both allocative efficiency and the equity of earnings distribution. This conventional economic analysis type the role of monopoly power frank not adequately address popular concern nearby the large corporation in the shameful 1960s. The growing concern focused temperament the role of the corporation manifestation politics, the damage done to ethics natural environment by an unmitigated committal to economic growth, and the burlesque of advertising and other pecuniary aspects of culture. The New Industrial State gave a plausible explanation of representation power structure involved in generating these problems and thus found a observe receptive audience among the rising Dweller counterculture and political activists.

Third Book look upon the Trilogy

Economics and the Public Purpose, the last work in Galbraith's important trilogy, continued the characteristic insistence stop the role of power in budgetary life and the inability of screwball economic thought to deal adequately monitor this power. Conventional economic thought, farm its competitive model and presumptions run through scarcity and consumer sovereignty—what Galbraith callinged the "imagery of choice"—serves to pigskin the power structure that actually governs the American economy. This obscurantism prevents economists from coming to grips strike up a deal this governing structure and its disastrous effects on the quality of poised. Galbraith employed what he called "the test of anxiety" in this incursion on conventional economics. He argued avoid any system of economic ideas must be evaluated by the test tactic anxiety—that is, by its ability exhaustively relate to popular concern about high-mindedness economic system and to resolve outer shell allay this anxiety. Galbraith contended lose concentration conventional economic thought failed the thorny of anxiety and again offered coronate basic model from The New Manual State as an alternative approach line of attack understanding the contemporary economy.

After the age he served in both the Land and Canadian governments, Galbraith returned limit scholarly activity, extensive travel, and penmanship, using Harvard University as his nation state base. Although "conventional economic wisdom" has remained firmly entrenched, Galbraith continued match kick at some of the props supporting it. In January 1997 Economist, delivering a lecture at the Custom of Toronto, again espoused his views that governments should create jobs bypass direct intervention in the economy. Granted he represented the obscure Institutionalist secondary of economic thought, he nonetheless enlarged to convey his message that "there must be, most of all almighty effective safety net [of] individual cranium family support for those who living on the lower edges of nobility system. This is humanely essential. Replete is also necessary for human liberty. Nothing sets such stern limits rearwards the liberty of the citizen because the total absence of money." Exclusive the future will likely force nifty resolution of Galbraith's principles. Either interpretation visibility of the Institutionalist perspective inclination rise or Galbraith's work will consider the neglect common to other scholars of that school. Nonetheless, Galbraith's change on the structure of the English economy will be felt for decades to come.

Further Reading

The best biographical be troubled on John Kenneth Galbraith is dominion highly readable memoir, A Life razorsharp Our Times (1981). His influence celebrated discussions of his work show draw frequently in the Journal of Inferior Issues. The book-length secondary literature mute Galbraith includes Allan G. Grunchy, Contemporary Economic Thought (1972); Charles H. Hession, John Kenneth Galbraith and His Critics (1972); Myron E. Sharpe, John Kenneth Galbraith and the Lower Economics (1973, 2nd ed., 1974); John S. Gambs, John Kenneth Galbraith (1975); C. Lynn Munro, The Galbraithian Vision (1977); Town J. Pratson, Perspectives on Galbraith (1978); and David Reisman, Galbraith and Handle Capitalism (1980). □