This semester has been a wild ride, some parts were tougher than others, and some were more enjoyable too, but I can not not deny the fact that I now have more confidence in American business history than before. This semester has left me constantly thinking and searching for bits of history that are normally overshadowed by events that are generally distinctive. Aside from said generic and obvious events, I came into class knowing very vaguely about business history. The furthest I know was only the beginning, about the Columbian exchange with the Old and New world, and some pieces of records from the 19th and 20th century. All the other facts were new to me, and I have to say that American business and capitalism have come a long way since when it was established. I used to think that capitalism was just simply an economic system that focuses on individual profit, but now I see that it includes investments and profits, a cycle, a lifestyle for the country.
My surprise comes from the amount of economic revolutions that occurred throughout the course of American business history, from the sheer amount, to how early the first ones have been since. A consumer revolution in the Anglo Atlantic World, and the infamous Shay’s Rebellion of 1787, struck me surprised by their dates. Also, not too long since America was established, mercantilism was the face of the economic system rather than capitalism, which I also found worthwhile and interesting. Finally, this was more confirmation than surprise or news, but capitalism goes hand in hand with war, as shown in WWI and WWII.
Studying about business history from a modern business or economic perspective gives insight, and shared experience. It creates context, lets others know that America has been in the business of creating deals for a long time, and they know of successes and failures from them. It becomes a guide for future generations, and may provide some useful advice to them if it were needed.
Thank you for reading my final blog, this semester has been a blast.
Thank you for your post; it does indeed seem like high praise when a student describes a business/economic history course as a “wild ride” and a “blast”! I’m glad this class has enhanced your knowledge… Just to push back on a couple of ideas, was the era of mercantilism “pre-capitalist,” or did it perhaps represent a different phase or epoch of capitalism? I would also be wary of the assumption that war is “good for the economy,” regardless of whether we think capitalism and war go hand-in-hand.
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