TIL the Keynes and Newton connection. I wonder if him coining the term "animal spirits" is inspired by his readings on alchemy. Keynes, to my knowledge, has such a well-integrated understanding of the economy: from the abstract sense of national wealth (ie GDP) to the day-to-day actions and decisions of humans which aggregates into a market.
Interesting point. My immediate connection upon reading the term "animal spirits" is Jung's idea of "animus" and "anima." Jung himself was a self-proclaimed alchemist, and many of his concepts, like animus and anima, are alchemical in origin. So whether Keynes got it from alchemy directly, or from one of these giants, the answer is yes :)
Economists today like to debunk Keynes, and act like he's a relic of the past, but they often neglect to mention that his theories were developed when the world still adhered to the gold standard and that many of his ideas are nonetheless viable in spite of this (which is more than can be said for a lot of recent monetary theory).
TIL the Keynes and Newton connection. I wonder if him coining the term "animal spirits" is inspired by his readings on alchemy. Keynes, to my knowledge, has such a well-integrated understanding of the economy: from the abstract sense of national wealth (ie GDP) to the day-to-day actions and decisions of humans which aggregates into a market.
Interesting point. My immediate connection upon reading the term "animal spirits" is Jung's idea of "animus" and "anima." Jung himself was a self-proclaimed alchemist, and many of his concepts, like animus and anima, are alchemical in origin. So whether Keynes got it from alchemy directly, or from one of these giants, the answer is yes :)
Economists today like to debunk Keynes, and act like he's a relic of the past, but they often neglect to mention that his theories were developed when the world still adhered to the gold standard and that many of his ideas are nonetheless viable in spite of this (which is more than can be said for a lot of recent monetary theory).