European Lefts and the Economy of the 20th and 21st Century

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

The economic question constitutes a central stake for the European left wing. Questioning the way in which the latter thinks and practices the economy makes it possible to go beyond the widespread but erroneous stereotype of a political family incapable, when it comes to power, of carrying out a coherent economic policy for lack of skills on the topic. At the crossroads of history, sociology and political science, this course offers a re-examination of the tormented relationship of the leftists in the economy of World War I with the consequences of the financial crisis of 2007-2008. Mobilizing a transnational and comparative approach and relying on numerous case studies taken throughout the European space, we are interested in the circulation of ideas, experts and economic practices. In the final analysis, it will be well to emphasize the crucial role of the economy in the political mutations and rebuilding of the lefts throughout the period studied.