Arrange the following in chronological order (oldest to latest).
(A) General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money
(B) Great Depression
(C) The Economic Consequences of the Peace
(D) An Enquiry into the Nature and Cause of the Wealth of Nations
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → (D), (C), (B), (A)
Economics began as a subject in the eighteenth century, but macroeconomics became a separate branch only in the twentieth, after a world-wide slump. The four items trace that story, from Adam Smith’s book through Keynes’s warning after the First World War and the Great Depression to Keynes’s General Theory.
(D) An Enquiry into the Nature and Cause of the Wealth of Nations — 1776. This is the work of Adam Smith, who is regarded as the founding father of modern economics, then known as political economy. It is regarded as the first major comprehensive book on the subject.
(C) The Economic Consequences of the Peace — 1919. In this book John Maynard Keynes, who took part in international diplomacy after the First World War, foretold that the peace agreement of the War would break down.
(B) Great Depression — 1929. From 1929 output and employment in the countries of Europe and North America fell by huge amounts; in the USA unemployment rose from 3 per cent to 25 per cent between 1929 and 1933, and output fell by about 33 per cent.
(A) General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money — 1936. Keynes published it after the Depression had shown that workers ready to work could stay unemployed for years. Macroeconomics emerged as a separate branch of economics after this book.
Shortcut: The Wealth of Nations is older than the other three by about a century and a half, so the order must begin with (D), and Option (2) is the only option that does.
Note: A similar question was also asked in CUET (UG) 2026 on 21-05-2026 (Slot 2) and 23-05-2026 (Slot 2).
NCERT (2025-26): “Adam Smith Adam Smith is regarded as the founding father of modern economics (it was known as political economy at that time). He was a Scotsman and a professor at the University of Glasgow. Philosopher by training, his well known work An Enquiry into the Nature and Cause of the Wealth of Nations (1776) is regarded as the first major comprehensive book on the subject.… 1.1 Emergence of Macroeconomics Macroeconomics, as a separate branch of economics, emerged after the British economist John Maynard Keynes published his celebrated book The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money in 1936. The dominant thinking in economics before Keynes was that all the labourers who are ready to work will find employment and all the factories will be working at their full capacity. This school of thought is known as the classical tradition. However, the Great Depression of 1929 and the subsequent years saw the output and employment levels in the countries of Europe and North America fall by huge amounts.… John Maynard Keynes John Maynard Keynes, British economist, was born in 1883. He was educated in King’s College, Cambridge, United Kingdom and later appointed its Dean. Apart from being a sharp intellectual he actively involved in international diplomacy during the years following the First World War. He prophesied the break down of the peace agreement of the War in the book The Economic Consequences of the Peace (1919). His book General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money (1936) is regarded as one of the most influential economics books of the twentieth century.…” |