00995 - Economic History

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course students will have the basic methodological tools to study the main economic issues relating to long-term economic growth, technological innovation, the rise of the capitalist market, the new economy and globalization. They will be able to focus on the connections between economics and ethics, and to recognize the importance of categories, languages and different cultural contexts in the historical debate, analyzing them from a long-term perspective. They will have a critical methodological approach to problem-solving via data analysis and applying the relevant models to interpreting social and institutional processes. In their spoken language they will use the specific terminology.

Course contents

1. In the First Module (30 hours, Lesson period Sep 16, 2026 - Oct 23, 2026) the main concepts and issues of european economic history will be discussed, including an analysis of the society, economic policies and international economic relations between the late Middle Ages and the First Industrial Revolution in Britain (up to the first half of the XIX century.

2. In the Second Module (30 hours, Lesson period Nov 11, 2026 - Dec 18, 2026) the focus will be on the european and global economic evolution from the Second Industrial Revolution to the globalization of the late XX/early XXI century.

Students with a 6-CFU exam in their study plan  attend the Second Module of the Economic History course.

Readings/Bibliography

Students who attend at least 75% of the lessons are considered to be attending.

ATTENDING STUDENTS (12 CFU)

1. Knowledge of the topics taught in lectures

2. Knowledge of the essays and other documentation made available during the course on VIRTUALE

3. Knowledge of the following two textbooks:

- A. Di Vittorio (a cura di), Dall’espansione allo sviluppo. Una storia economica d’Europa, Torino, Giappichelli, 2011 (or other edition).

- E. Felice, Ascesa e declino. Storia Economica d’Italia, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2015 (or other edition).

ATTENDING STUDENTS (6 CFU)

1. Knowledge of the topics taught in lectures

2. Knowledge of the essays and other documentation made available during the course on VIRTUALE

3. Knowledge of the following textbook:

- A. Di Vittorio (a cura di), Dall’espansione allo sviluppo. Una storia economica d’Europa, Torino, Giappichelli, 2011 (or other edition). The students who attend the First Module will study from page 3 to page 200; the students who attend the Second Module will study from page 203 to page 514.

Alternatively, attending students taking the 6-CFU course may submit a paper in accordance with the guidelines specified in the 'Assessment Methods' section. The bibliography for the paper will be provided on a case-by-case basis by the professor during the course.

NON-ATTENDING STUDENTS (12 CFU)

They will have to study the following four texts:

1. Required textbooks:

- A. Di Vittorio (a cura di), Dall’espansione allo sviluppo. Una storia economica d’Europa, Torino, Giappichelli, 2011 (or other edition).

- E. Felice, Ascesa e declino. Storia Economica d’Italia, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2015 (or other edition).

2. Other two books to be chosen among:

- L. Allen, Il sistema finanziario globale. Dal 1750 a oggi, Milano, Bruno Mondadori, 2009.

- V. Beonio-Brocchieri, Storie globali: persone, merci, idee in movimento, Milano, EncycloMedia, 2011.

- P. Bevilacqua, Il cibo e la terra. Agricoltura, ambiente e salute negli scenari del nuovo millennio, Roma, Donzelli, 2018.

- T. Brook, Il cappello di Vermeer. Il Seicento e la nascita del mondo globalizzato, Torino, Einaudi, 2015.

- M. Carmagnani, Le isole del lusso. Prodotti esotici, nuovi consumi e cultura economica europea, 1650-1800, Torino, UTET, 2010.

- M. Carmagnani, Le connessioni mondiali e l’Atlantico 1450-1850, Torino, Einaudi, 2018.

- S. A. Conca Messina, Profitti del potere. Stato ed economia nell'Europa moderna, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2016.

- F. Fauri, L’Unione Europea. Una storia economica, Bologna, il Mulino, 2015.

- M. Fusaro, Reti commerciali e traffici globali in età moderna, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2021 (or other edition).

- A. Goldstein, Quando l'importante è vincere. Politica ed economia delle Olimpiadi, Bologna, il Mulino, 2024.

- E.L. Jones, Il miracolo europeo. Ambiente, economia e geopolitica nella storia europea e asiatica, Bologna, il Mulino, 2005.

- S. Latouche, Breve storia della decrescita, Torino, Bollati Boringhieri, 2021.

- S. Lorenzini, Una strana guerra fredda: lo sviluppo e le relazioni Nord-Sud, Bologna, il Mulino, 2017.

- G. Messetti, La Cina è già qui, Milano, Mondadori, 2022.

- S. W. Mintz, Storia dello zucchero: tra politica e cultura, Torino, Einaudi, 2020.

- J. Mokyr, La leva della ricchezza. Creatività tecnologica e progresso economico, Bologna, il Mulino, 1995.

- E. Padoa-Schioppa, Antropocene. Una nuova epoca per la Terra, una sfida per l'umanità, Bologna, il Mulino, 2021.

- V. Smil, Storia dell’energia, Bologna, il Mulino, 2000.

- M. B. Steger, La globalizzazione, Bologna, il Mulino, 2016.

- D. Strangio, Da colonie a Paesi in via di sviluppo. L’evoluzione dei sistemi economici dalla colonizzazione alla globalizzazione, Milano, Mondadori Università, 2011 (or other edition).

NON-ATTENDING STUDENTS (6 CFU)

They will have to study the following two texts:

1. Required textbook:

- A. Di Vittorio (a cura di), Dall’espansione allo sviluppo. Una storia economica d’Europa, Torino, Giappichelli, 2011 (or other edition).

2. Other one book to be chosen among:

- L. Allen, Il sistema finanziario globale. Dal 1750 a oggi, Milano, Bruno Mondadori, 2009.

- V. Beonio-Brocchieri, Storie globali: persone, merci, idee in movimento, Milano, EncycloMedia, 2011.

- P. Bevilacqua, Il cibo e la terra. Agricoltura, ambiente e salute negli scenari del nuovo millennio, Roma, Donzelli, 2018.

- T. Brook, Il cappello di Vermeer. Il Seicento e la nascita del mondo globalizzato, Torino, Einaudi, 2015.

- M. Carmagnani, Le isole del lusso. Prodotti esotici, nuovi consumi e cultura economica europea, 1650-1800, Torino, UTET, 2010.

- M. Carmagnani, Le connessioni mondiali e l’Atlantico 1450-1850, Torino, Einaudi, 2018.

- S. A. Conca Messina, Profitti del potere. Stato ed economia nell'Europa moderna, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2016.

- F. Fauri, L’Unione Europea. Una storia economica, Bologna, il Mulino, 2015.

- M. Fusaro, Reti commerciali e traffici globali in età moderna, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2021 (or other edition).

- A. Goldstein, Quando l'importante è vincere. Politica ed economia delle Olimpiadi, Bologna, il Mulino, 2024.

- E.L. Jones, Il miracolo europeo. Ambiente, economia e geopolitica nella storia europea e asiatica, Bologna, il Mulino, 2005.

- S. Latouche, Breve storia della decrescita, Torino, Bollati Boringhieri, 2021.

- S. Lorenzini, Una strana guerra fredda: lo sviluppo e le relazioni Nord-Sud, Bologna, il Mulino, 2017.

- G. Messetti, La Cina è già qui, Milano, Mondadori, 2022.

- S. W. Mintz, Storia dello zucchero: tra politica e cultura, Torino, Einaudi, 2020.

- J. Mokyr, La leva della ricchezza. Creatività tecnologica e progresso economico, Bologna, il Mulino, 1995.

- E. Padoa-Schioppa, Antropocene. Una nuova epoca per la Terra, una sfida per l'umanità, Bologna, il Mulino, 2021.

- V. Smil, Storia dell’energia, Bologna, il Mulino, 2000.

- D. Strangio, Da colonie a Paesi in via di sviluppo. L’evoluzione dei sistemi economici dalla colonizzazione alla globalizzazione, Milano, Mondadori Università, 2011 (or other edition).

Teaching methods

The course will be delivered by lectures aided by slides.

Lessons are held exclusively in person and are not recorded.

Assessment methods

Students who attend at least 75% of the lessons are considered to be attending.

 

ATTENDING STUDENTS 12 CFU

The course is assessed through two oral exams: one intermediate ones on portions of the syllabus that have already been completed, and a final exam at the end of the course.

The dates of the interim oral examination will be announced at the beginning of the course.

The evaluation criteria for oral exams are the same as those for non-attending students. For attending students, active class participation will also be factored into the final grade.

For attending students the final mark will be the arithmetic mean of the marks achieved on the two oral exams.

 

ATTENDING STUDENTS 6 CFU

For attending students taking the 6-CFU course, the exam consists of an individual oral exam or, alternatively, the preparation and discussion of a paper.

Individual oral exam: It will focus on the topics covered during the second module of the course.

The evaluation criteria for the oral exam are the same as those for non-attending students. For attending students, active class participation will also be factored into the final grade.

Paper: As an alternative to the oral exam, attending students taking the 6-CFU course may submit a 12,000-character paper (including notes and bibliography) on a topic chosen from the themes covered by the professor during the second module of the course. The paper must be sent at least one week before the exam date to the following email address: alessandra.cantagalli@unibo.it

EVALUATION CRITERIA:

The evaluation of the paper will consider the student's capacity to make use of sources and bibliography related to the selected topic. For attending students the assessment will take into account also oral presentation (critical skills, clarity, and command of the specific language), dedication and active participation in class and during other students' presentations.

Students who demonstrate to have a global outlook and a good design of the selected topic and to use an appropriate language, will receive an excellent evaluation. Student who write a paper only based on the existing bibliography without making use of sources, will receive an adequate evaluation. Training gaps and / or inappropriate writing, even in a context of minimal knowledge of the subject, will lead to a sufficient evaluation. Training gaps, inappropriate writing, lack of orientation within the bibliographic materials will be evaluated negatively.

 

NON-ATTENDING STUDENTS (6 CFU, 12 CFU)

The course is assessed through a oral exam based on the text on the reading list.

EVALUATION CRITERIA:

The assessment will concentrate particularly on the skill displayed by the student in handling the sources and material in the exam bibliography and his ability to find and use information and examples to illustrate and correlate the various themes and problems addressed in the course.

The assessment will thus examine the student's:

- factual knowledge of the subject;
- ability to summarise and analyse themes and concepts;
- familiarity with the terminology associated with the subject and his ability to use it effectively.

Top marks will be awarded to a student displaying an overall understanding of the topics discussed during the lectures, combined with a critical approach to the material and a confident and effective use of the appropriate terminology.
Average marks will be awarded to a student who has memorized the main points of the material and is able to summarise them satisfactorily and provide an effective critical commentary, while failing to display a complete command of the appropriate terminology.
A student will be deemed to have failed the exam if he displays significant errors in his understanding and failure to grasp the overall outlines of the subject, together with a poor command of the appropriate terminology.

 

Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Examinations

While artificial intelligence tools can support independent study—such as for specialized insights, summaries, and self-assessment—their use in academic examinations is strictly regulated. For assessment purposes, students are permitted a limited, fully disclosed, and non-substantial use of AI strictly for supportive tasks (such as summarizing, paraphrasing, translating, or conducting literature searches). However, the substantial use of AI to generate or complete any part of the exam is strictly prohibited.

There are 12 examination sessions during the academic year: one in December (reserved for students who have the Economic History course, 6 CFU, in their curriculum); one per month from January to July; one per month from September to December.

Teaching tools

Power points summarizing the contents of the lessons, pdf files of proposed readings will be available on virtuale.unibo.it

Students with learning disorders and\or temporary or permanent disabilities: please, contact the office responsible (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students ) as soon as possible so that they can propose acceptable adjustments. The request for adaptation must be submitted in advance (15 days before the exam date) to the lecturer, who will assess the appropriateness of the adjustments, taking into account the teaching objectives.

Office hours

See the website of Alessandra Cantagalli [https://www.unibo.it/sitoweb/alessandra.cantagalli/en]

Office hours

See the website of Alessandra Cantagalli