What are the causes of the vast differences in wealth between nations? Why have certain societies prospered whilst others still grapple with poverty? Will inequality between the developed and developing worlds be permanent? Addressing these questions and understanding today’s global economy requires a historical perspective.
This course will begin with an introduction to Economic History as an interdisciplinary subject, and to the methods and sources economic historians use. You will then explore some of the key events of the past 500 years, including the Transatlantic slave-trade, colonialism, and the Industrial Revolution, examining their links to the phenomenon known as the ‘Great Divergence’, when levels of wealth in the Western world separated from everywhere else. We will then consider the more recent phenomenon of ‘Convergence’, and investigate why certain countries, including Japan and China, managed to catch up with their European counterparts, whilst others fell further behind. In the final part of the course you will reflect on the limits of ‘Convergence’, and assess whether inequality has become an immovable feature of global development. Throughout the course you will be introduced to frontline research and a variety of interdisciplinary approaches, with a particular focus on quantitative methods.
