IR364 THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF LATIN AMERICAN DEVELOPMENT
Prof. Carol Wise
Spring Semester 2018
VKC 152 T-TH 2:00-3:20
Office Hours: Thursday3:30-6:00Office: VKC 328
Phone: 213-740-2138
E-mail:
This course offers a survey of the main economic development themes and strategies that have prevailed in Latin America over the past century. By analyzing the interplay between politics and economics, as well as the interaction between domestic and international variables, the course explores the dynamic changes that have occurred over this time period. The course will proceed in three parts. Part one spans the period from 1900 to the eruption of the 1982 debt shocks---a critical juncture for Latin America that surpassed the dramatic political and economic impacts of the Great Depression era of the 1930s. Part two analyzes Latin America’s post-1982 transformation from the standpoint of trade liberalization, financial integration, and the widespread transition to democracy in the region. Part three identifies the most pressing issues that remain to be tackled on the contemporary development agenda: the future of regional trade and economic integration, the challenge of inequality, the debate over how Latin America has been affected and can best cope with China’s remarkable surge in the global economy, and the future of U.S.-Cuba relations. For the final week we will explore special contemporary topics on Brazil, Argentina, Mexico and Venezuela.
The course requirements include: two in-class mid-term exams, worth 20 pointseach and an in-class final exam worth 40 points; and, your participation in a group presentation and/or student debate. Your participation in the group presentation or student debate will count for 10 points; attendance and your participation in class discussions throughout the semester will count for 10 points of your grade. All assigned readings have been posted on Blackboard and should be completed prior to class. ONE POINT of extra credit will be granted for participation in the TIRP or JEP programs. If you accrue more than 3 unexcused absences your grade will be reduced by 1 point; more than six unexcused absences will result in a 2 point reduction in your grade, and so on.
Students with disabilities: Any student requesting academic accommodations based on a disability is required to register with Disability Services and Programs (DSP) each semester. A letter of verification for approved accommodations can be obtained from DSP. Please be sure the letter is delivered to me as early in the semester as possible. DSP is located in STU 301 and is open from 8:30 a.m.–5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. The phone number for DSP is (213) 740-0776.
CLASS SCHEDULE AND ASSIGNED READINGS
Week 1: Introduction and Overview of the Course
January 9: Overview
January 11: Film---“When Worlds Collide: The Untold Story of the Americas after Columbus”
Stanley Engerman & Kenneth Sokoloff. 2012. Economic Development in the Americas since 1500: Endowments and Institutions (New York, NY: Cambridge University Press), chapter 9. PDF Posted on Blackboard
THE 20th CENTURY IN HISTORICAL CONTEXT
Week 2: The Political Economy of Development
January 16: The Current Scenario
Mark Eric Williams. 2012. “Hemispheric Relations in the Twenty-First Century.” In Mark Eric Williams, Understanding U.S.-Latin American Relations (New York, NY: Routledge), pp. 318-355. PDF Posted on Blackboard
January 18: Defining Development
Patrice Franko. 2007. The Puzzle of Latin American Economic Development (New York: Rowman & Littlefield, third edition), chapter 1. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Stanley Engerman & Kenneth Sokoloff. 2012. Economic Development in the Americas since 1500: Endowments and Institutions, chapter 2. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Week 3: The “Good” and “Bad” Times
January 23: The 20th Century---1900-1914, the “Good Times”
Film clips on the Mexican Revolution
Rosemary Thorp. 1998. Progress, Poverty and Exclusion: An Economic History of Latin America in the 20th Century (Washington, DC: Inter-American Development Bank), pp. 1-95. PDF Posted on Blackboard
January 25: World War I & the “Bad Times”---The First Big Shock
Film clips on Latin America in World War I
(first 4 minutes)
(Mexico in WWI)
Victor Bulmer-Thomas. 2003. The Economic History of Latin America since Independence (Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, second edition), pp. 82-188. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Week 4: The Great Depression and Populist Renaissance
January 30: The Great Depression---The Second Big Shock
Rosemary Thorp, Progress, Poverty and Exclusion, pp. 97-125. PDF Posted on Blackboard
- The effect of the Great Depression on Latin America (Group 1)
February 1: Populist Renaissance---Brazilthe Estado Novo
Film clip on Brazil’s Metamorphosis
(start at 6.53)
Thomas Skidmore. 1967. Politics in Brazil, 1930-1964 (New York, NY: Oxford University Press), pp. 3-47. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Week 5: Populist Renaissance---Mexico& Argentina
February 6: Mexico---Cardenas and the Birth of Single-Party Rule
Film clips on the Cardenas era in Mexico.
(start at 1:22).
Juan Carlos Moreno-Brid and Jaime Ros, Development and Growth in the Mexican Economy (New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2009), pp. 68-92. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Roberto Newell and Luis Rubio. 1984. Mexico's Dilemma: The Political Origins of Economic Crisis (Boulder and London: Westview Press), pp. 29-72. PDF Posted on Blackboard
- The Tenacity of single-party rule in Mexico (Group 2)
February 8: Argentina---The Rise of Peronism in the 1940s
Film Clips on this period in Argentina.
Jorge Fodor. 1989. “Argentina’s Nationalism: Myth or Reality?” In The Political Economy of Argentina, 1946-83, edited by Guido Di Tella and Rudiger Dornbusch (London: MacMillan), pp. 31-55. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Pablo Gerchunoff. 1989. “Peronist Economic Policies, 1946-55.” In The Political Economy of Argentina, 1946-83, edited by Guido Di Tella and Rudiger Dornbusch, pp. 59-85. PDF Posted on Blackboard
David Scheinin, “Argentina: The Closest Ally.” In Latin America during World War II,edited by Thomas M. Leonard and John F. Bratzel (New York, NY: Roman & Littlefield, 2007), pp. 183-201. PDF Posted on Blackboard
- What exactly is “Peronism”? (Group 3)
Week 6: World War II---The Third Big Shock
February 13: Latin America and World War II
Film clip: (South America in WWII) 4.38-10:43
David Masterson and Jorge Ortiz Sotelo, “Peru: International Developments and Local Realities.” In In Latin America during World War II, edited by Thomas M. Leonard and John F. Bratzel, pp. 126-143. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Joseph Smith, “Brazil: Benefits of Cooperation.” In In Latin America during World War II, edited by Thomas M. Leonard and John F. Bratzel, pp. 144-161. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Victor Bulmer-Thomas, The Economic History of Latin America since Independence, pp. 232-267. PDF Posted on Blackboard
February 15:The Heyday of Import-Substitution Industrialization (ISI)
Patrice Franko, The Puzzle of Latin American Economic Development, pp. 55-75. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Monica Rankin, “Mexico: Industrialization through Unity.” In In Latin America during World War II, edited by Thomas M. Leonard and John F. Bratzel, pp. 17-35. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Rosemary Thorp, Progress, Poverty and Exclusion, pp. 127-199. PDF Posted on Blackboard
- Why did Latin America choose a protectionist trade model after WWII? (Group 4)
Week 7: Mid-term Exam I
February 20: Study Day
February 22: Mid-term Exam I
Week 8: “Developmentalism” and the Rise of Authoritarian Rule
February 27: From ISI to Export-led Development
Peter Kingstone. 2011.The Political Economy of Latin America (New York, NY: Routledge), pp. 19-44. PDFPosted on Blackboard
Katherine Sikkink. 1991. Ideas and Institutions: Developmentalism in Brazil and Argentina (Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press), pp. 29-170. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Film: “The War on Democracy”
March 1: Market Experiments and Military Coups
Daniel C. Hellinger. 2011. Comparative Politics of Latin America (New York, NY: Routledge), chapter 7. PDF Posted on Blackboard
- Why did military dictatorships embrace radical market reforms in the 1970s? (Group 5)
THE 1980s: A CRITICAL TURNING POINT
Week 9: The 1982 Debt Crisis---The Fourth Big Shock
March 6: The International Environment Turns Hostile
Victor Bulmer-Thomas, The Economic History of Latin America since Independence, pp. 353-391.
Patrice Franko, The Puzzle of Latin American Economic Development, pp. 77-143.
Rosemary Thorp, Progress, Poverty and Exclusion, pp. 201-239.
March 8: Democratic Transition and the Interplay between Politics & Markets
Max Cameron and Carol Wise. 2004. “The Political Impact of NAFTA on Mexico: Reflections on the Political Economy of Democratization,” Canadian Journal of Political Science, vol. 37, no. 2 (2004): 301-323. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Juan Corradi. 2003. “Prelude to Disaster: Weak Reform, Competitive Politics in Argentina.” In Post-Reform Politics in Latin America: Competition, Transition, Collapse, edited by Carol Wise and Riordan Roett (Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press), pp. 105-133. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Kenneth Roberts. 2003. “Party System Collapse amid Market Restructuring in Venezuela.” In Post-Reform Politics in Latin America: Competition, Transition, Collapse, pp. 249-272. PDF Posted on Blackboard
- Explaining Latin American democratization in the 1980s. (Group 6)
Week 10: Spring Break
Week 11: The Advent of Market Reforms in the 1990s
March 20: The “Washington Consensus”
Patrice Franko, The Puzzle of Latin American Economic Development, pp. 145-184.
Peter Kingstone. 2011.The Political Economy of Latin America (New York, NY: Routledge), pp. 45-90. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Rosemary Thorp, Progress, Poverty and Exclusion, pp. 241-273.
March 22: Some Dissenters---Cuba, Bolivia & Venezuela
Richard Feinberg. 2016. Open for Business: Building the New Cuban Economy (Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press), chapter 2. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Eduardo Silva. 2009. Challenging Neoliberalism in Latin America(Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press), chapters 3, 5, 7. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Week 12:Mid-term Exam II
March 27: Exam Review
March 29: Mid-term Exam II
CHALLENGES & TRANSFORMATIONS IN THE 21st CENTURY
Week 13: In the Wake of Market Reforms
April 3: Trade Liberalization & Regional Integration
Patrice Franko, The Puzzle of Latin American Economic Development, pp. 235-283.
Glauco Oliveira. 2007. “What Went Wrong? Brazil, the United States and the FTAA?” In Requiem or Revival: The Promise of North American Integration, pp. 124-143. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Carol Wise. 2009. “The North American Free Trade Agreement,” New Political Economy 14 (1): 135-149. PDF Posted on Blackboard
- Why did the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) fail? (Group 7)
April 5: Weathering the 2008-09 Global Financial Crisis (GFC)
Carol Wise, Leslie Armijo, and Saori Katada, eds. 2015. How Emerging Economies Survived the 2008-09 Global Financial Crisis (Washington, DC: Brookings Institution), chapters 1 & 9. PDF Posted on Blackboard
- How did Latin America escape the worst of the GFC? (Group 8)
Week 14: Contemporary Development Transformations---China-Latin America Integration
April 10: The Contours of the Relationship---Aid, Trade, Investment
Kevin Gallagher, The China Triangle: Latin America’s China Boom and the Fate of the Washington Consensus(New York: Oxford University Press, 2016), Chapters 5 & 7.PDF posted on blackboard
Ruben Gonzalez-Vicente, “Mapping Chinese Mining Investment in Latin America: Politics or Market?” The China Quarterly, vol. 209 (2012): 35-58. PDF posted on blackboard
Javier Santiso and Rolando Avendano, “Economic Fundamentals of the Relationship,” in Hearn and Leon-Manriquez, eds. China Engages Latin America: Tracing the Trajectory, eds. Adrian H. Hearn and José Luis León-Manríquez (Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2011).
PDF posted on blackboard
Barbara Stallings, “Chinese Foreign Aid to Latin America: Trying to Win Friends and Influence People,”in Margaret Myers and Carol Wise, eds. The Political Economy of China-Latin America Relations in the New MillenniumNew York, NY: Routledge, 2016). PDF posted on blackboard
April 12: A Newfound Friend for the Region? Is China Here to Stay?
Robert Devlin. 2008. “China’s Economic Rise.” In Riordan Roett and Guadalupe Paz, eds., China's Expansion into the Western Hemisphere: Implications for Latin America and the United States (Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press), pp. 111-147. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Enrique Dussel Peters and Kevin P. Gallagher. 2013. “NAFTA’s Uninvited Guest: China and the Disintegration of North American Trade,” CEPAL Review, vol. 110, pp. 83-108. PDF posted on blackboard
Rhys Jenkins. 2012. “China’s Global Expansion and Latin America,” Journal of Latin American Studies, vol. 42, no. 4, pp. 809-837. PDF posted on blackboard
Carol Wise.2016. “Playing both Sides of the Pacific: Latin America’s Free Trade Agreements with China.” Pacific Affairs, vol. 89, no. 1: 75-101.PDF posted on blackboard
- Explaining the new China-Latin America “relationship” in the 21st century. (Group 9)
Week 15: The Political Economy of Cuba’s Transition / The Inequality Debate
April 17: A Socialist-Market Economy…..
Richard Feinberg. 2016. Open for Business: Building the New Cuban Economy, chapters 1, 3 & 4.
PDF posted on blackboard
- What are the debates and conflicts over economic reform within Cuba? (Group 10)
April 19: The Biggest Challenge of all---Inequality in Latin America
Ricardo Barros et al. 2010. “Markets, the State, and the Dynamics of Inequality in Brazil.” In Declining Inequality in Latin America, edited by Luis F. Lopez-Calva and Nora Lustig (Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press), pp. 134-174. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Leonardo Gasparini and Guillermo Cruces. 2010. “A Distribution in Motion: The Case of Argentina.” In Declining Inequality in Latin America, edited by Luis F. Lopez-Calva and Nora Lustig (Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press), pp. 100-133. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Gerardo Esquivel, Nora Lustig, and John Scott. 2010. “Mexico: A Decade of Falling Inequality.” In Declining Inequality in Latin America, edited by Luis F. Lopez-Calva and Nora Lustig (Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press), pp. 175-217. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Week 16: Special Topics in the 21st Century
April 24: Argentina & Brazil---Corruption and Competition in the 2000s
Cornel Ban, “Brazil’s Liberal Neo-developmentalism: New Paradigm or Edited Orthodoxy?” Review of International Political Economy, vol. 20, no. 2 (2013): 298-331. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Kathryn Hochstetler and Alfred Montero. 2013. “The Renewed Developmental State: The National Development Bank and the Brazil Model,” The Journal of Development Studies, vol. 49, no. 11 (2013): 1484-1499. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Neal P. Richardson. 2009. “Export-Oriented Populism: Commodities and Coalitions in Argentina,” Studies in Comparative International Development, vol. 44, no. 3 (2009): 228-255. PDF Posted on Blackboard
Christopher Wylde. 2016. Post-neoliberal Developmental Regimes in Latin America: Argentina under Cristina Fernández de Kirchner,” New Political Economy,vol. 21, no. 3 (2016): 322-341. PDF Posted on Blackboard
April 26: Mexico and Venezuela---Different Ways of Faltering
Robert A. Blecker and Juan Carlos Moreno-Brid. 2017. “Trumping the NAFTA Renegotiation,” ECLAC, Subregional Headquarters in Mexico. PDF Posted on Blackboard
- Is Donald Trump right about NAFTA’s need to be renegotiated? (Group 11)
- Why has Venezuela melted down, both politically and economically? (Group 12)
April 27: Review for Final Exam, TBA
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FINAL EXAM: Thursday, May 3, 2:00-4:00 pm
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