Synopses & Reviews
This elegant and enjoyable book describes the theory of imperfect competition in an explicitly general-equilibrium framework. . . The main strength of the book is that it provides a coherent and precise narrative of developments in two theoretical areas to which the author has made important contributions. . . The writing has an elegiac quality. The author contrasts the Golden Sixties , when general equilibrium theory was superbly flourishing with the present, much darker period for this field of microeconomic theory . The elegant and deep results described here will give the reader a sense of the mood of the period as well as the intellectual accomplishments. Douglas Gale, Journal of Economic Literature To non-economists, it is hard to understand why economists spend so much effort on the competitive model whereas the world seems to be replete with large and powerful economic actors. In this respect, Jean Gabszewicz is atypical: he has spent most of his research time working on imperfectly competitive markets. However, instead of restricting himself to partial equilibrium analyses, he has tackled from the outset the problem of imperfect competition in a system of interrelated markets with the aim of studying how market power is spread throughout the whole system. This is one of the most challenging and fascinating tasks that economists face. But this is also a very hard one, and may explain why so few have tried. This book builds on the seminal contributions of Cournot and Edgeworth and does not intend to provide a full-fledged answer to the many questions raised by the general theory of imperfect competition. However, by presenting in a transparent way most of the problems that lie at the roots of imperfect competition in general equilibrium and by proposing various elegant solutions, it paves the way to any future research in the field. No doubt it will become a basic reference in the long run. The economics profession should thank Jean Gabszewicz for a fresh and daring way of looking at market power. Jacques Thisse, Universit