We identify three separate stages in the post-World War II history of applied microeconomic research: A generally non-mathematical period; a period of consensus (from the 1960s through the early 1990s) characterized by the use of mathematical models, optimization and equilibrium to generate and...

"In this engaging and fascinating memoir, Ned Phelps not only recounts the endeavors of how he reshaped the field, it details the relationships he formed with influential economists like Paul Samuelson, with philosophers like John Rawls, and eminent artistic figures of the 20th centuries....