On December 17th 2024 I recorded a podcast with the hosts at the Sheffield Political Economy Research InstituteLink opens in a new window, Chris SaltmarshLink opens in a new window and Dillon WamsleyLink opens in a new window, for the 'SPERI Presents...Link opens in a new window' series on the nature of capitalist crises. I was invited to talk about the Long Depression, which began in 1873 and, on some accounts, lasted until the middle of 1890s. The hosts were especially interested in asking me about how it impacted upon the changing nature of economic theory at that time, in particular how the marginalist pioneers attempted to explain it. The resulting discussion touched on how marginalism provided only a limited means for exploring why the Long Depression affected global business confidence for over two decades and why, as a consequence, the marginalists were required to look beyond the limits of their own theoretical artefacts when trying to tell people at the time why their lives were so hard.

The recording is available here: