Interest in Economic History
A clear understanding of the origins and effects of all global economic aspects requires an understanding of their historical origin. In order to come up with clear economic solutions to the existing economic problems, a diagnosis of the origins of the problems is inevitable. It brings about the necessity of studying economic history. It has always been my unique philosophy to get to the historical underpinnings of the situation in order to have a deeper and clearer understanding of any phenomenon. To a great extent, the past occurrences define the present and the future possibilities with regards to economic variables.
As a matter of fact, my utmost interest in Economic History is propelled by the urge to understand the major setbacks and milestones in economic performance. Many economic regimes have occurred in the past an example being The Great Depression and its reoccurrence cannot be assumed to be impossible (Canterbery). Acquiring facts on how the bygone setbacks were countered will enable me assess the current situations and tackle them effectively. Also, being an unapologetically empirical field, it will expand my understanding of the real world. It will give me a chance to validate if the explanations given for their occurrence fits the theoretical framework proposed by several economists.
In addition, the historical record that the course is deeply rooted will broaden my knowledge of the long run economic schemes. For instance, the rise of the Asian economies and the relative decline of the west is best explained in historical perspective. Also, other long run issues like the past, present and the future of globalization and the technological advancements in industrial production sparks my interest. The myriad of literature I have read on the fields will boost my endeavors to do more research on the areas. This will to a great extent help me to concentrate on a particular field which I am yet to pick under guidance. My mentors, the school of thought I concur to in the economics as well as my professor, will come in handy in this case.
The continually recorded history of the pre-modern Chinese economy is an area I have been working on. The success and emergence of the Empire of China were as a result of the unification of the multiple commerce units as well as internal competition that led to the emergence of science and technology. This was named "a hundred flowers blossoming" and the overpowering of the rivals in the bloody war of the East Mainland also made a significant step towards the conquest by the Qin kingdom (Prak and Zanden). The knowledge of the "dynastic cycle" of China will enable me understand the primary economic processes that china undergone through to date where it is viewed as one of the largest economies in the world. A possibility of projecting the economic success based on prior knowledge of any economy is vital towards the understanding of the trends an economy is bound to take in the future.
I plan to extend my knowledge in Economic History to my area of interest (undergraduate Economics Instructor). In this sense, I will use the knowledge gained to convince the undergraduates that their theoretical work both in micro and macroeconomics are a reality in the world. For instance, the Harrod- Domar thesis of projecting the economic growth of the economy will be easily explained to the students as they view the implications to the real world economies (Harte). Economic History is a very critical area which I plan to take in my career advancement as an economic analyst to help me explain variables that affect the economy. I also plan to major in the field and motivate my students to be champions as it is a field with vast applications to the real world we live in at the moment and the future.
Works cited
Canterbery, E. Ray. The Global Great Recession. Singapore: World Scientific, 2011. Print.
Harte, N. B. The Study Of Economic History. Hoboken: Taylor and Francis, 2013. Print.
Prak, Maarten, and Jan Luiten van Zanden. Technology, Skills And The Pre-Modern Economy In The East And The West. Leiden: BRILL, 2013. Print.
