The history of capitalism first appeared as a framework for teaching. Much of the field’s strength and vitality thus far has been drawn from the enthusiastic reception it received from undergraduate and graduate students. The demand for courses that use historical methods to engage issues of political economy in innovative ways has often been overwhelming. Lectures, seminars, and tutorials on the topic are currently offered at a wide range of schools, including Harvard, Columbia, Princeton, Brown, the University of Chicago, the New School for Social Research, the University of Georgia, the University of Florida, and Vanderbilt. Indeed, the success of the history of capitalism as a field will be determined in classrooms and lecture halls, not merely in the archives and on the pages of scholarly journals. As students on campuses around the world increasingly interrogate the foundations of the current economic system, our success will depend on what we can offer to complement, enhance, and challenge the ways students think about the world around them.
We have collected resources on this page that we hope practioners in the field will find useful.
Conference Report: Teaching the History of Capitalism
In November 2011, the conference on Teaching the History of Capitalism gathered a small group of scholars in the field at Harvard University to reflect on their own teaching, learn from the wisdom and experience of our colleagues, and develop a clearer sense of the field’s pedagogical aims. The conversation focused on how the history of capitalism might enhance college curriculums. Several scholars who could not attend in person also sent their syllabi and suggestions.
You can download and read the full text of the resulting pedagogical report here.