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A Short History of Financial Euphoria
World-renowned economist Galbraith, the bestselling author of The Affluent Society, reviews great speculative booms of the last three centuries, including the junk-bond follies of the 1980s. With wisdom and wit, he shows how the lessons of history can help us avoid financial calamity. "Entertaining in its instructiveness".--The Boston Globe.
Paperback, 128 pages
Published
July 1st 1994
by Penguin Books
(first published May 1991)
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This is not my usual style of book. My accountant husband urged me to read it (after I failed to read another book of Galbraith's--The Great Crash, I believe it was). This book was short and a fast-paced read, essential if I'm going to read some non-fiction book about financial matters.
I flew through this book and it was a big eye-opener. I knew some of the history included but Galbraith lays out the similarities of various economic crises to show how (clichéd though it may sound)...more
I flew through this book and it was a big eye-opener. I knew some of the history included but Galbraith lays out the similarities of various economic crises to show how (clichéd though it may sound)...more
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Déjà vu all over again. That seems to be the pattern of financial boom and bust. In this slender volume, John Kenneth Galbraith selectively traces episodes of speculative excess from the Tulipomania of the mid-17th century through the Crash of '87. Why don't we ever learn? Galbraith identifies several reasons. First, collective memories of financial debacles tend to be very short; therefore, each new generation of financial "wizards" can effectively start over with a blank slate. ...more
Literary mini-history of financial collapses
John Kenneth Galbraith’s short, literary book on financial speculation and the inevitability of subsequent economic catastrophe contends that devastating financial collapse is built into the free-enterprise system – an idea as intriguing today as it was when this book debuted in the mid-1990s. The late famous economist ended this treatise with a chilling question: “When will come the next great speculative episode and in what venue will it ...more
John Kenneth Galbraith’s short, literary book on financial speculation and the inevitability of subsequent economic catastrophe contends that devastating financial collapse is built into the free-enterprise system – an idea as intriguing today as it was when this book debuted in the mid-1990s. The late famous economist ended this treatise with a chilling question: “When will come the next great speculative episode and in what venue will it ...more
"Recurrent descent into insanity is not a wholly attractive feature of capitalism." -- John Kenneth Galbraith
There is madness in the markets, according to Galbraith. Speculators, he believes, are ignorant, irrational creatures driven by short-sighted greed and pride. Most lack the ability to honestly scrutinize their motives and actions -- or read a balance sheet. Relying on the supposed wisdom of the wealthy (and those who handle great wealth), short-term investors are cau...more
There is madness in the markets, according to Galbraith. Speculators, he believes, are ignorant, irrational creatures driven by short-sighted greed and pride. Most lack the ability to honestly scrutinize their motives and actions -- or read a balance sheet. Relying on the supposed wisdom of the wealthy (and those who handle great wealth), short-term investors are cau...more
This book was referenced several times in "Juggling Dynamite" so I thought I'd check it out. Galbraith's style reminds me of the intellectuals I was always tripping over at the University but he's quite readable. In fact, the book is pretty funny in a sarcastic, cutting kind of way.
Galbraith reviews the aspects of human nature and the economy that allow us to constantly go into boom and bust cycles. He starts around the time of "Tulipomania" in the 1600s and goe...more
Galbraith reviews the aspects of human nature and the economy that allow us to constantly go into boom and bust cycles. He starts around the time of "Tulipomania" in the 1600s and goe...more
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Reading this in the wake of the credit crisis, sub-prime mortgage debacle, and all the other calamities of the past few years, it is remarkable how accurately Galbraith describes exactly what happened - in a book that was last revised in 1992. He seems utterly prescient, and his calm conviction that the next euphoric crash is inevitable has been borne out multiple times since this book was published.
It's short, insightful and definitely worth reading.
It's short, insightful and definitely worth reading.
For Galbraith, self-delusion draws people into a speculative frenzy. This delusion - this madness - cannot be legislated against; there is no policy to defend against it. While Galbraith accepts the growth and bursting of bubbles as part of the market, he does not, believe that bubbles are a benign part of the business cycle. And because it cannot be defended against, the only thing that can be done is to mitigate the effects of the crash. Of course, there will continue to be debate over whether...more
Definitely a brief read but you will get the gist of how free markets get weird when people lose their senses of proportion. Would you pay 50K for a tulip bulb? Hilarious but devastating. Remember...values go up and values go down. If values go up unusually steeply you may want to pause and think about it. Anyway...a very quick non-technical and reasonably informative read. Not a huge fan of the writing style though.
This short book should be a must read for all those involved in our financial institutions. Galbraith shows how we have repeatedly allowed ourselves to ride the boom/bust roller coaster and how the pattern repeats itself. If only we could see it while it was happening and be willing to put on the brakes!
This one was a bit tough to slog through, despite how short it was. However, it was interesting to see how history tends to repeat itself in the financial sphere - I particularly liked the story of tulip speculation in Holland and how it mirrored the crash of 2008.
Most recently updated 1993. Scary. Could have been written in July 2009. Brilliantly executed descriptions of euphorias(ae?) of the past.
Only short-coming is that it's very short on the prescriptive. Ends with a bit shrug of the shoulders.
Only short-coming is that it's very short on the prescriptive. Ends with a bit shrug of the shoulders.
Succinct and convincing. Galbraith reveals the several common historical threads which span throughout hundreds years of speculative mania. Explains the key elements which build a bubble, and cause it to burst.
Everyone should read this. Very short, very fun, very angry old fatalistic liberal.
Bobkelley1
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Good overview of speculation and why we seem to overlook the consequences.
Very clear, although no comfort. I know I'm a financial idiot.
Really concise and enjoyable. Very easy to read.
Willy
marked it as to-read
Recommended by Henk Hofland; Knack 2008-12-24.
A short and marvelously skeptical book, recommended despite Galbraith's tortured, unquotable syntax, which seems to have been learned from Yoda.
A quick look at the recent history of financial crises. I recommend this for anyone who wants a quick primer on past financial crises.
You have this today with the stock market as high as it is!
light on the stuff you really want to know
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John Kenneth Galbraith, OC (October 15, 1908–April 29, 2006) was a Canadian-American economist. He was a Keynesian and an institutionalist, a leading proponent of 20th-century American liberalism and progressivism. His books on economic topics were bestsellers in the 1950s and the 1960s.
Galbraith was a prolific author who produced four dozen books and over a thousand articles on variou...more
More about John Kenneth Galbraith...
Galbraith was a prolific author who produced four dozen books and over a thousand articles on variou...more
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