HISTORY 407: Latin American Crises and Opportunities

Course Description

This course studies why Latin America has experienced in the 20th and 21st centuries recurrent economic and political crises – and why it is still a land of enormous opportunity. While this is primarily a history course, it undertakes a multidisciplinary examination of the region’s strengths and weaknesses by discussing theories of economic development, political and sociological models as well as the influence of crime and violence. Case studies anchored in representative countries will be used to illustrate historical trends. We will study key export commodities (from silver to cocaine), formal and informal labor markets (including child labor), and women’s participation in economic development.