The reflection upon the dynamics of growth / development inside the most advanced economies, investigating their main evolving components (from the technological, institutional, organizational, financial points of view), the dynamic elements and the main stages of transition from one period to the following one.
Together with the analysis of the evolution of the economic structures in Europe and in the Western world there will be an explanation of the steps of the evolution of the Italian economy from the Napoleonic perido onward.
The first lessons will focus on the methodology in economic history, on the main models on the evolution of the economic systems, on a basic chronology of the world economy from the first Industrial Revolution to the XXI century. Then, the focus will move to the developement of the Italian economy and society in the same period.
Finally, the students attending the course will be divided into working groups and they will prepare, present, and discuss specific researches on the main topics of the course. Some of these topics will be: the funcioning of th e markets in the long run; industrialization; agriculture; banks; finance; monetary policies; population and the economy; natural resources; the role of the State; work; economic inequality; technological innovation; migrations; economic crisis. All these topics can be developed in a national or international perspective.