Course Schedule
GETTING STARTED
This module gives an overview of how the course is structured and what you can expect to learn.
- Read (this) course schedule and the syllabus
- Visit the progress page
- Learn more about the course instructors
- Introduce yourself in the discussion forum
WEEK 1: INTRODUCTION TO CAPITALISM (January 15, 2018)
Read
- Harold James, "Capitalism Da Capo", American Interest (2015)
- Jonathan Levy, "The Rise of Finance", Public Books (2011)
- Gail Fosler, "Lessons from Kindleberger on the Financial Crisis", The Gail Fosler Group (2013)
Watch
- Introduction by Miles Macallister
- Narratives of Capitalism
- Financialization
- Panic and Crisis
Work
- Complete the knowledge checks
- Respond to one of the discussion questions
- Complete the wrap up
WEEK 2: LABOR (January 22, 2018)
Read
- Peter Coy, “Unemployment in the U.S. Is Falling So why Isn’t Pay Rising?”, Bloomberg (2017)
- Kimberly Clausing, “Labor and Capital in the Global Economy”, Democracy (2017)
- Michael Grabell, “Can Low-Wage Industries Survive Without Immigrants and Refugees?”, ProPublica (2017)
- James Livingston, “F*ck work”, Aeon (2016)
- [optional] Sami Mahroum, “An OPEC for Migrant Labor?”, Project Syndicate (2016)
- [optional] Seth Ackerman, “The Work of Anti-Work: A Response to Peter Frase”, Jakobin (2012)
- Clip: “Packard: the last shift”, Aeon
Watch
- Introduction by Felice M. Physioc
- Labor's Conceptualization Over the 20th Century
- Global Migration Patterns and Labor
- The Future of Work
Work
- Complete all knowledge checks
- Respond to one of the discussion questions
- Complete the wrap up
- Complete Final Exam 1
WEEK 3: COMMODITIES AND CONSUMPTION (January 29, 2018)
Read
- Sarah Hill, “The Sweet Life of Sidney Mintz”, Boston Review (2016)
- Constance L. Hays, “For Wal-Mart, New Orleans is Hardly the Big Easy”, New York Times (2003)
- Nelson Lichtenstein, “Is Walmart Good for Americans?” [Interview], PBS (2004)
- "Walmart on Tax Day: How Taxpayers Subsidize America’s Biggest Employer and Richest Family”, Americans For Tax Fairness (2014)
- Florian Shui, “The Good Consumer”, Aeon (2014)
Watch
- Introduction by Teal Arcadi
- Commodities and the History of Capitalist Exchange
- Mass Consumption
- Consumerism's Upside?
Work
- Complete all knowledge checks
- Respond to the discussion questions
- Complete the wrap up
WEEK 4: DEVELOPMENT (February 5, 2018)
Read
- Perdue, Peter C., “Lucky England, Normal China”, H-Net (2000)
- Rieff, David, “An American Passion for Tyrants”, The New York Review (2014)
- Kirk, Martin, “It’s Time to Move Beyond Growth for Growth’s Sake”, Aeon (2015)
- Ojomo, Efosa, “Obsession with Ending Poverty is where Development is Going Wrong”, The Guardian (2017)
- “What are some of the Main Concerns and Criticisms about the World Bank and IMF?”, The Bretton Woods Project (2005)
Watch
- Introduction by Rob Konkel
- Development, Its Origins, and the Great Divergence
- A Third World? The Cold War and Competing Models of Development
- Post Development?
Work
- Complete all knowledge checks
- Respond to the discussion questions
- Complete the wrap up
- Complete Final Exam 2
WEEK 5: ENVIRONMENT (February 12, 2018)
Read
- “A Brief History of Climate Change”, BBC News (2013)
- Elizabeth Kolbert, “Can Climate Change Cure Capitalism?”, The New York Review of Books (2014)
- Patrick Robbins, “Interrupting the Future: A Conversation with Timothy Mitchell”, The Leap Blog (2016)
- Clip:“Natural Capitalism”, YouTube.com
- John Ledger, “How the Cod War of 40 Years Ago left a Yorkshire Community Devastated”, The Yorkshire Post (2015)
- John Simmonds and Pelagic Group, “Managing Scotland’s Herring Stocks”, Pelagic News (2011)
Watch
- Introduction by Caitlin Harvey
- Coal and Oil: Resources that Shape the History of Capitalism
- Natural Capitalism, and Case Studies in Environmental History
- Climate Change in Historical Perspective
Work
- Complete all knowledge checks
- Respond to the discussion question
- Complete the wrap up
WEEK 6: GLOBALIZATION (February 19, 2018)
Read
- Marvin McInnis, Review of "Globalization and History: The Evolution of a Nineteenth-Century Atlantic Economy“
- Mark Levenson, “End of a Golden Age”
- Branko Milanovic, “Understanding Global Inequality”
- Adam Tooze, “A General Theory of Crisis”
- John Judis in conversation with Dani Rodrik, “What’s Wrong With Our System of Global Trade and Finance”
- [optional] Dani Rodrik, “Globalization Paradox: Democracy and the Future of the World Economy”
- [optional] Branko Milanovic, “Global Inequality: A New Approach for the Age of Globalization”
Watch
- Introduction by Niharika Yadav
- Periodization and Drivers of Globalization
- Globalization and Equality
- Globalization, Nation-states and Democracy
Work
- Complete all knowledge checks
- Respond to the discussion questions
- Complete the wrap up
- Complete Final Exam 3
COURSE SUMMARY
This module wraps up the course