Department of Economics Summer 2004 University of California, Berkeley Economics 113 M,T,W,Th 4-6 PM Dr. Carson Economics 113-- American Economic History Economics 113 is an upper-division course in the study of the development of the U. S. economy. We survey over 300 years of American economic development, but focus most intensely on periods that were most fundamental to our economic system. This course has numerous goals, but the most fundamental is the application of economic principles to historical episodes. As a professor in an economics department that is part of a business school, I must make economic history interesting to an audience that would just about be anywhere else. To keep my business students from falling asleep, I have devoted much attention to the basics of history that are relevant today. So, this is the story. In the absence of institutions, David Hume may just be correct; life is "Nasty, Brutish and Short!" Yet, we have avoided the fates of our ancestors. Why is that? Well, we have formalized two important institutions: the state and the market. A good part of economic history focuses on the latter. What is a market and what are the conditions under which it exists? Is a market a good thing and does history validate this claim? And, was your 6th grade teacher correct; was North America populated by ex-cons through indentured servitude, or was a market system working there? Wasn't the institution of slavery, so to speak, a market run-a-muk? Does a market lead to growth, either economic or population? And, what is it about population growth? There is hardly anything that elicits greater enthusiasm than studying how p . . .o . . . p . . .u . . . l . . . a . . . t . . . i . . . o . . . n . . . s grow, except perhaps watching two sloths mate, but just what is it that makes population growth so damn important? It doesn't matter where you turn; there it is. If you decide to go into politics, business or just into the local Parent Teacher Association, changes in demography are going to be there. So, this takes us into migration and that most unappealing study of disease and how we have learned to deal with it. And, who knows; if we can understand the historical processes of the American disease culture, maybe we can replicate our successes into third world countries. Why is that the Europeans gave North American indigenous cultures the boot? Is there anything we can say about the standards of living of North American indigenous cultures or can we just say that since things were bad for them in the late 19th century on reservations, therefore, they must have been bad for them in the 18th and 17th centuries? What about financial markets; do financial markets lead to economic growth, economic growth lead to financial markets, or do they arise simultaneously? What about technology? What about, what about, what about? The questions never end, because just about the time you think you have it figured out, you find something new that you can learn from history. But that is the interesting part! Having said that Economics 113 is equivalent to History 135; credit cannot be received for both courses. Economics 113 must be taken for a grade if it is to be used toward the requirements for the major.COURSE LEARNING OBJECTIVES 1. Understand the critical nature of property rights in economic growth, technological improvement and improving standards of living. 2. Consider the market process and how if evolved. 3. Understand American living standards and how they have changed throughout American history. 4. Alternative measures for standards of living beyond traditional measures, such as income and wages. 5. Trends in American mortality and anthropometric history. Grading You are graded on your performance relative to the class in four areas. 1. Exam 1, Essay (100 Points) 2. Exam 2, Essay (100 Points) 3. Comprehensive Final, Essay (200 Points) Professor's Office Hours Prerequisite Economics 1 (Introduction to Microeconomics and Macroeconomics) is the only prerequisite for the course. Some familiarity with the broad outlines of U.S. economic history is presumed. Required Textbooks Atack, Jeremy and Fred Bateman, A New Economic View of American History, 2nd Edition. W. W. Norton. 1994. Wright, Gavin, The Political Economy of the Cotton South: Households, Markets and Wealth in Nineteenth Century America. W.W. Norton, 1978. Course Reader Optional TextbookFor those unfamiliar with U.S. History, you may also wish to purchase the optional textbook: John Faragher et al, Out of Many, 4th edition, Prentice-Hall, 2002. Grading Grades are assigned according to your point accumulation relative to the class high. Grades are assigned according to the following scale: Grade Percent A 93% A- 90% B+ 87% B 84% B- 81% C+ 78% C 75% C- 70% D+ 67% D 64% D- 60% E Below 60% POLICY ON SCHOLASTIC DISHONESTY: When legal code is necessary to maintain academic honesty and social interaction, social bounds of reciprocity are eliminated. Ergo, it is expected that the highest forms of honesty and respect for others be adhered too. Outside of that, the University expects a student to maintain a high standard of individual honor in all scholastic work. STUDENT CLASSROOM CONDUCT: Be nice. Failure to be cool with me, the instructor, or other students may adversely affect your grade. If you sometimes feel like you're stepping over the lines of social decorum, you probably are, so step back and reevaluate, because it may detract from our classroom environment. Other than that, let's just hang out and learn as much as