Based on a lecture by Michel Oris^[1]^[2]^[3]

Languages

This course draws heavily on the research of Paul Bairoch, whose work is a leading authority on economic and social history. Our journey through time aims to provide students with a solid understanding of the historical dynamics that have shaped our contemporary economic and social world. Our aim is to provide you with a reading grid that transcends time and enables you to decipher the contours and complexities of today's issues, which are the fruit of a long historical process.

We will endeavour to identify the major shifts and turning points in economic and social history through a series of structuring themes. The course will begin with an examination of European societies at the dawn of economic modernity, from the end of the Middle Ages to the threshold of the Industrial Revolution in the 18th century. This historical sketch will lay the foundations for understanding the upheavals to come. We will then look at the Industrial Revolution, a global phenomenon with its epicentres in Europe, but rapidly spreading to the United States and Japan. This second part will examine the mechanisms and repercussions of this momentous turning point. The third part will look at the first wave of globalisation, from 1850 to 1914, a period during which economies became interconnected on an unprecedented scale.

Continuing our exploration, we will revisit the 15th century to compare the socio-economic contexts of the major regions of the world at that time, and then analyse the 'great divergence', the process that led to the distinction between developed and developing countries, often referred to as the Third World. The 'long' 20th century, stretching up to the present day, will be addressed in a fifth section. We will look at the countries of the North, which are facing growth crises and are currently engaged in a delicate transition towards 'post-industrial' societies. We will conclude this course by focusing on the countries of the South in the sixth part. Having borne the burden of decolonisation and suffered the after-effects of a colonial system that confined them to economic dependence on the West, these countries are now faced with the challenges of a demographic explosion and poverty. Despite this, some of them are beginning to emerge on the world stage, redefining contemporary economic and geopolitical balances.