B.E. International Program
Faculty of Economics, Thammasat University
EE
202 World Economic History
Course
Syllabus
Semester: 1/2007
(August 20 – December 09, 2007)
Instructor: Ajarn
Brian Kennedy
Office: Main
Office, B.E. Program, 3rd floor, Faculty of Economics Building, or
Main Office, BAS Program, 2nd Floor, Lib Building
Office hours: Wednesday
and Friday, 11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. or by appointment (I will be on campus
Tuesday – Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m, at either the Econ or Lib Building; often I stay until 6:30 or so.)
Contact Information: bkennedy@gmu.edu, bpk@econ.tu.ac.th, (I check email frequently),
or Phone 01-442-7426 (after 7:30 a.m., before midnight)
Class Schedule: Wednesday
and Friday, 12.30 p.m.- 2.00 p.m.
Room: Room
201, Econ Building
Course Content:
Study and analysis of world economy with an emphasis on the economic expansion of Western territories between the 14th and the 21st centuries. Emphases are given to contextual changes in economy, geography, history society, culture, religion and politics as the role of determining economic leadership of certain economies, such as Italy, Portugal, Spain, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Germany, Sweden, the United States and Japan.
Course Objectives:
This class has three primary purposes. Firstly, it is to identify the major economic changes that have occurred throughout world history, and to analyze what they were, when they occurred, and why. Thus, students will be expected to know (or learn) the basic outlines of world history, so that they can learn how economic rules have shaped it.
Secondly, the class seeks to demonstrate how the rules and laws of economics are universal; they apply through time and space. Thus, students will learn how complex organizations have been created throughout history, how material, technological and human capital limitations have influenced societies and history, and how different societies have solved similar problems in different, and similar, ways. And they will learn how the laws of economics apply in non-market economies, how decisions and resources are allocated in the absence of modern markets.
Finally, the class will explore the economic, societal and political prerequisites of economic growth. Economic growth throughout history shows some persistent patterns, and these patterns apply to today, as well as the past. Different theories of growth and development stress different factors as being key; the answer to the question of what specific factors are necessary for sustained economic growth has great import to the world today.
Prerequisites:
Econ 201 (introduction to economics) is not a prerequisite for this course, though it will be very helpful. While this course will be very non-mathematical, a certain degree of familiarity with economic terms and concepts is assumed. A basic knowledge of world history is also assumed for this course. Students should be familiar with the broad outlines of world history. Certain periods of history will be highlighted in greater detail, to demonstrate or illustrate concepts taught, but students will not be expected to know these periods in detail before class.
Text:
There is not standard text for this subject, and most of the books on the subject assume either an extensive working knowledge of Western History, or a great deal of familiarity with economic subjects; often the books assume both. As such, the material for the course will come from several sources, all collected into a general reader. The readings are drawn from the books and articles listed below.
Cameron, Rondo and Larry Neal, A Concise Economic History of the World: From Paleolithic Times to the Present, New York, Oxford University Press, 2003
Jones, Eric, The European Miracle; Environments, Economies and Geopolitics in the History of Europe and Asia, New York: Cambridge University Press, 2003
North, Douglass C. and Robert Paul Thomas, The Rise of the Western World: A New Economic History, New York; Cambridge University Press, 1973
North, Douglass C., Structure and Change in Economic History, Douglass C. North, W.W. Norton and Company, New York, 1981
Mokyr, Joel, The Lever of Riches: Technological Creativity and Economic Progress, New York, Oxford University Press, 1990
Mentioned Texts:
These are books that have had a significant impact outside economics, which will be briefly covered in class. Again, they are available, but are not required for class.
Olsen, Mancur, The Rise and Decline of Nations, New York, Yale University Press, 1981
Kennedy, Paul, The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers: Economic Change and Military Conflict from 1500 to 2000, New York, Vintage Books, 1987
Diamond, Jared, Guns, Germs and Steel; the Fates of Human Societies, New York, W.W. Norton and Co, 1999
Evaluation:
The class evaluations will be based on four exams, given throughout the semester. Each exam will be 1½ hours in length, students will have a choice of what questions to answer. A sample exam will be passed out before the first exam.
Each exam is worth a percentage of your grade as given below. The Midterm exam, and the Final exam, will both be comprehensive. The exam schedule is given below:
Exam One: TBA 20%
Exam Two (Midterm): Friday, October 12th, 12:30 – 2:00 25%
Exam Three: TBA 25%
Exam Four (Final): Thursday, December 20th, 9:00 – 12:00 30%
Cheating:
Don’t. If you do, and I catch you, you will be reported to the program director for appropriate punishment. At a minimum, you will receive a zero on the exam you are caught cheating on, other punishments include automatically failing the course, and being suspended for one (or more) semesters.
Topics:
Below is a tentative course outline. Depending on student knowledge, some parts may move a little faster or slower. Certain classes, marked “(HISTORIC INFO)”, will involve a more in depth analysis of historic facts; essentially I will use those classes to make sure you know the history of the period well enough to discuss the economic underpinnings of it.
Week
One: Introduction, Geographic Determinism
Class
One: Opening statements, the questions to be answered
Introduction
to the Modified Solow Growth Model
Class
Two: Geographic Determinism
Kemmer;
Growth from One Million BC
Diamond;
Guns, Germs and Steel
Week
Two: Paleolithic Times, the Agricultural Revolution
Class
One: (HISTORIC INFO) How did people live?
Class
Two: The agricultural Revolution
Malthusian
Economics
Returns
to scale…..
Week
Three: The Ancient (Biblical) World
Class
One: (HISTORIC INFO) The early empires
Egypt, Sumeria, India and China
“Hydraulic
Societies”
Assyria
Class
Two: Technological Change in the Ancient world
Technology
Organization
Week
Four: The Classical World
Class
One: (HISTORIC INFO) Greece and Persia, Rome
The
Greek Phalanx, the Roman Legion, the Stirrup
Class
Two: Smithian Growth and Specialization, Trade
Exam One
Week
Five: The Fall of Rome, The Olsen Hypothesis
Class
One: Roman History in Perspective; Chinese History
Economic
Concept; Rent Seeking
Class
Two: Olsen, the Decline and Fall of Empires
Chinese
and Indian History
Week
Six: The Early and Middle Middle-Ages
Class
One: (HISTORIC INFO) Technological and Social Regression
Class
Two: Feudalism
Technological
Change
The
Medieval Peasant and the Roman Slave
Week
Seven: The Late Middle Ages
Class
One: (HISTORIC INFO) The Black Death
Diamond
Revisited
Price
Changes, Factors of Production
Class
Two: The Solow Growth Model
Relative
and absolute Price Changes
Changes
in Social Relationships
The
Decline of Feudalism
Week
Eight: Imperialism and the Age of Discovery
Class
One: (HISTORIC INFO) The commercial Revolution
Northern Italy and the Rise of Commerce
Antwerp and Amsterdam, The Low Countries
The
decline of guilds
Class Two: The Portuguese and Spaniards
Henry
the Navigator
Portuguese
exploration and trade
Spanish
conquests, the age of inflation
Exam Two: Midterm Week
Week
Ten: A Neo-Classical Model of the State
Class
One: Model Overview
Public
Goods
Class
Two: Security
Economies
of Scale and the Provision of Security
Week
Eleven: A Neo-Classical Model of the State Pt. II
Class
One: Revenue Maximization
Power,
and the Exit Option
Class
Two: Historic Examples
Assyria
vs. Egypt
China vs. India, vs. Europe
Week
Twelve: European Growth after the Black Death
Class
One: (HISTORIC INFO) Portugal, Spain and France, and Eastern Europe
Conquest
and Management
State
run vs. Private Sector
Absolutism
vs. Local/Federalism
Feudalism
and Serfdom
Class
Two: The Netherlands, England
Trade
and the Dutch State
The
Common Law
Exam Three
Week
Thirteen: The English vs. French Monarchy
Class
One: Property Rights
Class
Two: Property Rights and the Common Law
Week
Fourteen: Industrialization
Class
One: (HISTORIC INFO) The Early Industrial Revolution
Serendipity
Governance
Mercantilism
Class
Two: (HISTORIC INFO) The Later Industrial Revolution
Technology
Science
and the Scientific Revolution
Patents
and Property Rights
Week
Fifteen: the Problem with China
Class One: Why
didn’t China discover Europe
Class
Two: Why didn’t China Discover Europe, Pt. II
Week Sixteen: TBA
Final Exam:
Last Modified; November 17, 2007