Latin American Economic Development
Fall 2010 Readings
1. When (and why) did Latin America fall behind economically?
Coatsworth, John, 2008, Inequality, Institutions and Economic Growth in Latin America, Journal
of Latin American Studies 40: 545-569. KK
*handout: major Latin American wars in the 19th century
Bulmer-Thomas, Victor, 2003, “The Struggle for National Identity,” The Economic History of
Latin America Since Independence (Cambridge University Press). KK
2. How did governments try to close the gap in the 20th century?
Thorp, R., 1998, “International Shocks,” Progress, Poverty, and Exclusion: An Economic History
of Latin America in the 20th century (The Johns Hopkins University Press). KK.
Note: This Thorp reading is really terrible. Just hand out some tables from Thorp and BulmerThomas on how concentrated exports were (one or two main products, exports and imports to the
same country) and show what happened (in tables) during the Great Depression. Next time skip
this for sure!!
Cardoso, Eliana and Ann Helwege, 1995, Import-Substitution Industrialization, in Latin America's
Economy: Diversity, Trends, and Conflicts (MIT Press). KK
“Latin American Dependencia,” video clip.
3. The temptations (and travails) of economic populism: when state involvement thwarts
development
“Counterrevolution in Chile,” video clip.
Dornbusch, Rudiger and Sebastian Edwards, 1989, Macroeconomic Populism in Latin America,
NBER Working Paper #2986, “Overview,” “Populism in Allende’s Chile,” and “Populism in Peru.”
KK
4. The 1980s: Crisis, Stabilization and Reform
Sachs, Jeffrey, 1985, External debt and macroeconomic performance in Latin America and East
Asia, Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, 2, 523-564. KK
Delamaide, Darrell, 1985, Debt Shock: The Full Story of the World Credit Crisis (Garden City,
NY: Anchor Press/Doubleday), “The Mexican Weekend” and “The Money Changers.” KK
Latin American Economic Development
Fall 2010 Readings
“Bolivia at the Brink & Shock Therapy Applied,” video clips.
Sachs, Jeffrey, Making the Brady Plan work, Foreign Affairs, Summer. KK
Kaufman, Robert, 1990, Stabilization and adjustment in Argentina, Brazil and Mexico, in Nelson
(ed.) Economic crisis and policy choice: the politics of adjustment in the third world (Princeton,
NJ: Princeton University Press). KK
*Neiburg, F., 2005, Economists & economic cultures in Brazil and Argentina: toward a
comparison on heterodoxies, Tempo Social, vol.1. D2L
Teichman, Chapter 5, From the Proceso to Alfonsín, pp. 99-107.
*Cardoso, F. H., 2007, Kings of the Jungle (Ch. 8) and A Real President (Ch. 9) in The Accidental
President of Brazil: A Memoir (PublicAffairs). D2L
5. Re-thinking the relationship between the state and development
Teichman, selected chapters.
Chapter 4: Market Reforms in Chile: From Military Rule to Concertación
Chapter 6: Mexico: Market Reform in an Authoritarian Liberalizing Regime
Chapter 7, Overview; Menemismo: The Patrimonial Management of Market Reform;
Mexico: From the Authoritarian Management of Politics to the Politics of Transition.
The chapter on Mexico is ok but her main book on Mexico is probably better. The one on
Chile is boring. Didn’t have time to read the Argentine one. Find better alternative next
time.
“Chicago Boys & Pinochet,” video clip.
6. The Perils of Financial Globalization
Oppenheimer, Andres, 1998, Bordering on Chaos: Mexico's Roller-Coaster Journey Toward
Prosperity (Back Bay Books), Chapter 5 (“The Banquet”) & Chapter 11 (“The Christmas
Nightmare”). KK
Edwards, Sebastian, 1998, The Mexican Peso Crisis: How Much Did We Know?
We Know It? World Economy 21 (1): pp. 1-30. KK
“Crossing Borders & Averting a Meltdown: 1994,” video clips.
Teichman, Chapter 5, Menemismo, pp. 111-128.
When Did
Latin American Economic Development
Fall 2010 Readings
Blustein (2006), And the Money Kept Rolling In (and Out)...
Articles from The Economist on Argentina: (KK)
“Kohler Blinks Before Kirchner: Argentina and the IMF,” Sept. 12, 2003.
“The end of the affair? Argentina & its creditors,” Feb. 1, 2004.
“Short haircuts all round: Argentina's Debt Offer,” Nov. 4, 2004.
“A victory by default? Argentina's Successful Debt Restructuring,” March 7, 2005.
“Settling up: Argentina's debt negotiations,” Oct 31, 2009.
7. Reform fatigue and the rise of the left
Teichman, Democracy and the Challenges of Second-Stage Reform: p. 210-218
Hugo Chavez in Venezuela
Naím, Moíses, 2007, Introduction, in C. Marcano & A. Barrera Tyszka’s Hugo Chavez: The
Definitive Biography of Venezuela's Controversial President (Random House). KK
Naím, Moíses, 2001, The Venezuelan Story: Revisiting the Conventional Wisdom, Journal of
Democracy 12(2). KK
“The wrecking of Venezuela; Hugo Chavez's government,”Economist, May 15, 2010. KK
Lula in Brazil
“Getting it together at last,” The Economist, Nov 14, 2009. KK
Brazil Joins Front Rank Of New Economic Powers, Wall Street Journal, May 13, 2008. KK
Evo Morales in Bolivia
Romero, Simon, 2006, An Urbane Bolivian Politician Who Tries to Bridge Two Worlds, New
York Times, October 7. KK
Guillermoprieto, Alma, 2006, The New Bolivia: II, Foreign Affairs 53(14). KK