Latin America and the World Economy since 1492 (ES0039)

? Credit Points : 40 ? SCQF Level : 10 ? Acronym : HCL-3-LAWE

This course is taught through 18 one-hour lectures and sixteen 1.5 hour tutorial sessions. The course is divided into two halves and taught in successive semesters.

The first semester, focusing on Mexico, Peru, Brazil, and Argentina, between 1492 and 1914, seeks to explain why for most of this period, economic development in Latin America was relatively slow. Topics covered include: the dynamics of Spanish and Portuguese American settlement; local differences in relations between Europeans and indigenous peoples, with the very marked social inequality that resulted; the problems posed by restrictive commercial policies during the colonial period; the fuller integration of Latin American countries into the world economy as suppliers of primary products in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

The second semester, focusing on Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, and Cuba, since 1914, seeks to explain why much of Latin America for a time achieved quite rapid economic development, halted by crises of foreign indebtedness in the early 1980s. Topics covered include: the Mexican Revolution; the impact of world economic depression in the 1930s; government measures since the 1940s to promote industrialization and reduce dependence on foreign trade; the connections between economic trends and political behaviour (for example, with Cuba's 1959 revolution, and the widespread move elsewhere in the region from elected civilian government to military dictatorships during the 1960s and 1970s); the causes and consequences of Amazon rainforest settlement; the debt crisis of the early 1980s and its aftermath; programmes of structural adjustment and economic liberalization.

Entry Requirements

? Pre-requisites : Visiting students should normally have 3 to 4 History courses at Grade B or above.

Subject Areas

Home subject area

Economic and Social History, (School of History and Classics, Schedule E)

Delivery Information

? Normal year taken : 3rd year

? Delivery Period : Full Year (Blocks 1-4)

? Contact Teaching Time : 2 hour(s) 30 minutes per week for 18 weeks

Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes

The course seeks to develop:
- Knowledge of and competency in a field of colonial and 'Third World' economic and social history.
- Some ability to apply basic principles of economic analysis to historical issues, though no previous knowledge of economics is assumed.
- An understanding of 'dependency' concepts and their possible relevance to Latin American history.
- Student-led seminars are intended to develop the presentation and verbal skills of participating students.
- Written assignments are intended to develop the literary skills of students and their ability to construct coherent argument and analysis.

Assessment Information

Two 3000 word essays (one per semester), the average of which will count as 25% of the final assessment.

One three-hour degree exam which will count as 75% of the final assessment.