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Université Paris Ouest Nanterre La Défense Service d'enseignement À distance Bâtiment E - 2ème étage
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Référence : EAD0000301-1 Matière : LEA
E.C. : VLLACV53
Enseignement à distance 2010 - 2011
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1 devoir :
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- Devoirfacultatif n° 1 à remettre avant le 01-02-2011 - Sujet page 1.
Adresse de retour des copies :
Université Paris Ouest Nanterre La Défense Service C.O.M.E.T.E.
Gestionnaire de la matière LEA
Bureau E202
200, avenue de la République 92001 NANTERRE CEDEX
Avertissement : Cette oeuvre est protégée par le Code de la propriété intellectuelle. Toute diffusion illégale peut donner lieu à des poursuitesdisciplinaires et judiciaires.
Sujet de devoir proposé (facultatif) : Why can the British ‘Great Depression’ be seen as a myth? (entre 150 et 300 mots). Ce sujet correspond au type de question que vous pourriez avoir
er
à traiter à l’examen. Il est impératif que vous envoyiez vos devoirs avant le 1 mars. Cependant,
je vous conseille de le faire bien avant pour que ce travail n’interfère pas avecvotre programme
e
du 2 semestre.
Pour information, les sujets d’examens de juin et de septembre 2010 figurent en fin de brochure.
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Whereas Britain, in the 18th century, was but a fairly remote group of islands lying in the corner of Europe, in the course of the 19th century,the country became the world’s first industrial nation and was even nicknamed ‘the workshop of the world’. The advent of what later came to be known as the ‘Industrial Revolution’ indeed triggered a lot of transformations in British society as the country became the world’s first example of industrialization and a test bed for classical economics. But before trying to understand these changes andtheir impact on social and economic thoughts, I would like to take a brief look at what the country was like at the end of the 18th century.
1. Introduction: Britain at the end of the eighteenth century
In the last decades of the 18th century, Britain was predominantly rural. It was not highly populated (around 7 million people in 1770) and only about 20% of its population lived in cities. Most ofthe population lived in small villages in the countryside. Industry was still mostly in its infancy and revolved mainly around the manufacture of wool, which was done either in small workshops or at home, where families made a significant proportion of their own clothing. Households also sometimes produced a few items to sell, which granted them small surpluses of income.
A significantdifference with the rest of Europe, however, was the development of transport infrastructure. A very large network of toll paying roads, aka “turnpikes”, had been built during the 18th century, and then replaced by canals, a few decades later, which made transport even easier and helped linking sources of raw materials to seaports. Compared to its European neighbours, Britain was thus well-developed in thesecond half of the 18th century and foreign visitors often commented on the country’s wealth.
2. The origins of the Industrial Revolution
Although the term “industrial revolution” was not in widespread use until the 1890s, the estimates show that something very important was happening in the last two decades of the 18th century, with growth rates in the whole economy almost doubling comparedwith the previous 20-year period.
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Four main factors are commonly put forward by historians to explain the origins of the Industrial Revolution:
 Firstly, this acquisition of wealth took place at a time of rapid population growth (from 6.6 million in 1760 to 9.3 million in 1800), which later provided manpower for the new factories.
• Moreover, thanks to its advanced...