Niall Ferguson Didn’t Even Get Keynes’ Sex Life Right
It was reported yesterday that Harvard historian Niall Ferguson, asked at a recent conference about the economic theories of John Maynard Keynes, claimed that Keynes’ theories were self-centered and short-sightedbecause he was gay:
Although Keynes had many gay relationships, multiple sources confirm that his marriage to Lydia Lopokova was a sexually ardent one as well. Although I have only found snippets of their love letters online, one scholar
“Ferguson asked the audience how many children Keynes had. He explained that Keynes had none because he was a homosexual and was married to a ballerina, with whom he likely talked of “poetry” rather than procreated.”
It has been amply noted that these comments were bigoted, sloppy, and fatuous, but it turns out that they’re based on a false biographical premise as well.Although Keynes had many gay relationships, multiple sources confirm that his marriage to Lydia Lopokova was a sexually ardent one as well. Although I have only found snippets of their love letters online, one scholar