SOURCE: "The Economist," in John Maynard Keynes, Penguin Books, 1976, pp. 20-41.

In the following excerpt, Moggridge describes the general character of Keynes's thought, his method of approaching economic problems, and his views on the making of public policy.

Before examining the development of Keynes's economic ideas …, one should try to get inside the man and the mind behind the ideas in question—one must become aware of his habits of thought, his methods of working, his views as to the nature of economic inquiry, and the like. Fortunately, although Keynes did not leave behind an autobiography or a treatise on the nature of economic inquiry, his drafts, correspondence, comments on the work of others, and asides provide one with enough clues to begin to catch the flavor of the economist.

Perhaps the best starting point is to look … at the intellectual environment from which Keynes emerged—at Cambridge...