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Storia economica dell'Europa pre-industriale
Questo volume, divenuto ormai un classico nel panorama degli studi di storia economica, illustra come tra il secolo X e il secolo XIII l'Europa sia riuscita cone le sole sue forze a trasformarsi da area periferica e sottosviluppata a centro motore dell'economia mondiale. Fondendo due diverse anime della storia economica, quella prettamente storica e quella matematica, Cipolla mostra come il predominio mondiale acquisito dall'Europa nei secoli XVIII e XIX non sia stato un fenomeno casuale e improvviso, ma l'inevitabile conseguenza degli sviluppi culturali, tecnologici ed economici che si verificarono nel corso del Medioevo e del Rinascimento.
491 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1974
37 people are currently reading
757 people want to read
About the author
Carlo M. Cipolla
82 books144 followersCarlo M. Cipolla (August 15, 1922 – September 5, 2000) was an Italian economic historian. He was born in Pavia, where he got his academic degree in 1944.
As a young man, Cipolla wanted to teach history and philosophy in an Italian high school, and therefore enrolled at the political science faculty at Pavia University. Whilst a student there, thanks to professor Franco Borlandi, a specialist in Medieval economic history, he discovered his passion for economic history. Subsequently he studied at the Sorbonne and the London School of Economics.
Cipolla obtained his first teaching post in economic history in Catania at the age of 27. This was to be the first stop in a long academic career in Italy (Venice, Turin, Pavia, Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa and Fiesole) and abroad. In 1953 Cipolla left for the United States as a Fulbright fellow and in 1957 became a visiting professor at the University of California, Berkeley. Two years later he obtained a full professorship.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlo_M....
As a young man, Cipolla wanted to teach history and philosophy in an Italian high school, and therefore enrolled at the political science faculty at Pavia University. Whilst a student there, thanks to professor Franco Borlandi, a specialist in Medieval economic history, he discovered his passion for economic history. Subsequently he studied at the Sorbonne and the London School of Economics.
Cipolla obtained his first teaching post in economic history in Catania at the age of 27. This was to be the first stop in a long academic career in Italy (Venice, Turin, Pavia, Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa and Fiesole) and abroad. In 1953 Cipolla left for the United States as a Fulbright fellow and in 1957 became a visiting professor at the University of California, Berkeley. Two years later he obtained a full professorship.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlo_M....
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
July 29, 2018
La forgia da cui è nata l'Europa odierna illustrata in maniera chiara, accessibile, esauriente.
Il libro è interessantissimo, un grande saggio storico incentrato sull'evoluzione dell'economia europea nei secoli che vanno dal 1000 al 1700, prima dell'avvento della fatidica Rivoluzione Industriale. Ricchissimo di dati e tabelle che danno sostanza ai ragionamenti, mai banali e ricchissimi di spunti, mostra come l'evoluzione storica sia frutto di un numero elevatissimo di fattori, alcuni prevedibili, altri imponderabili (e difficilmente comprensibili anche ex post).
Devo dire che dopo questa lettura comprendo meglio le critiche rivolte all'altro saggio da me recentemente letto (e comunque di piacevolissima lettura e di grandissimo impatto) Armi, acciaio e malattie di Diamond per l'eccessiva semplificazione deterministica là fatta su alcuni fattori di sviluppo della storia umana: Cipolla più volte mette in guardia proprio a questo riguardo, ricordando quanto l'affresco storico di un certo periodo sia molto più sfumato e complesso di quanto dati (anche molti) e conclusioni possano far trasparire.
Estremamente interessante la prima parte, dove vengono forniti sommariamente al lettore gli strumenti delle "scienze" (scienza, per l'economia, è un parolone inappropriato) economiche utili a comprendere al meglio dinamiche sociali e situazioni illustrate nel proseguio, didatticamente perfetto senza essere mai pedante.
In sostanza, saggio stupendo da consigliare a chi vuole conoscere per sommi capi la storia economica del continente e dell'Italia, così da comprendere al meglio il presente. Acquisto assolutamente azzeccato.
Il libro è interessantissimo, un grande saggio storico incentrato sull'evoluzione dell'economia europea nei secoli che vanno dal 1000 al 1700, prima dell'avvento della fatidica Rivoluzione Industriale. Ricchissimo di dati e tabelle che danno sostanza ai ragionamenti, mai banali e ricchissimi di spunti, mostra come l'evoluzione storica sia frutto di un numero elevatissimo di fattori, alcuni prevedibili, altri imponderabili (e difficilmente comprensibili anche ex post).
Devo dire che dopo questa lettura comprendo meglio le critiche rivolte all'altro saggio da me recentemente letto (e comunque di piacevolissima lettura e di grandissimo impatto) Armi, acciaio e malattie di Diamond per l'eccessiva semplificazione deterministica là fatta su alcuni fattori di sviluppo della storia umana: Cipolla più volte mette in guardia proprio a questo riguardo, ricordando quanto l'affresco storico di un certo periodo sia molto più sfumato e complesso di quanto dati (anche molti) e conclusioni possano far trasparire.
Estremamente interessante la prima parte, dove vengono forniti sommariamente al lettore gli strumenti delle "scienze" (scienza, per l'economia, è un parolone inappropriato) economiche utili a comprendere al meglio dinamiche sociali e situazioni illustrate nel proseguio, didatticamente perfetto senza essere mai pedante.
In sostanza, saggio stupendo da consigliare a chi vuole conoscere per sommi capi la storia economica del continente e dell'Italia, così da comprendere al meglio il presente. Acquisto assolutamente azzeccato.
June 6, 2018
BOOK REVIEW: CIPOLLA, Carlo, Before the Industrial Revolution (ISBN-13: 978-0415090056)
This is a very readable yet scholarly sound economic history of pre-industrial Europe, discussing the main social forces which would drive industrialization, written by a leading Italian economic historian long established in the USA.
Having finished reading the historians (and biographer) in The Great Books of the Western World collection, I was left by Gibbon on the Middle Ages and wanted to bridge that to our times. It was clear the period I was lacking was one of deep social transformations brought about by European industrialization. So I turned to Encyclopaedia Britannica, where I found, in the references, this wonderful book.
Cipolla is a scholarly writer who masters his craft. This is a book for the general reader, which translates complex economic concepts into understandable words, in a clear prose, generously complemented with maps, tables, charts and graphs. About 40% of the 350-plus pages is made of by reference notes for the more erudite reader.
The book is formally structured in two parts. In part one, Cipolla presents his reader with a static view of Europe's economy and its social preconditions at the start of his narrative. He deals with the demand side; the factors of production; and productivity and production. In part two, essaying a dynamic viewpoint, he deals with the urban revolution; population trends and plagues; technology; enterprise, credit, and money; production, incomes, and consumption; the emergence of the modern age; and the changing balance of economic power in Europe. Throughout the text, Cipolla masterfully shows how intricate the patchwork of historical causation can be. He deconstructs several simplistic hypotheses, and while providing ample discussions furnished with evidence and references, his discussions are not unnecessarily long and only add fluidity and a fast pace to his narrative.
But the main quality of Cipolla's writing is that his powerful command of both historical detail and sources, and his ability to see the big picture and present it in human terms make the author a rare example of wisdom. It is in his wit and empathy for common folks' feelings and in his confessions of how historians cannot pin the point as to why exactly a people - Florentines, Dutch or English - suddenly turn inspired in all sectors of life to produce awesome works, from a thriving economy, technological inventions, works of art, military prowess and literary genius, he hints at the most human, the most pungent realities that seem to remain yet hidden in the cold facts of sources and scholarly work, but try to sprint out and tell us something about ourselves and the indomitable character of human spirit.
This is a book that inspires as much as it teaches, that provokes reflection as much as gives information. It does show some inaccuracies, as when the author says the Dutch market in the sixteenth century had quotations for Brazilian coffee, even if large scale production of coffee was introduced in this country only in the 19th century, or when he, seemingly following the state of the art in the time of writing, said almost no American silver or gold were taken by the Spanish to China via the Pacific route, something historians have recently started to doubt. Yet, anyone reading Plutarch or Gibbon or Thucydides will find errors there too; a careful reader will find there additional reasons to appreciate such masterpieces of History, to which Cipolla's book is a humble but deserving companion.
This is a very readable yet scholarly sound economic history of pre-industrial Europe, discussing the main social forces which would drive industrialization, written by a leading Italian economic historian long established in the USA.
Having finished reading the historians (and biographer) in The Great Books of the Western World collection, I was left by Gibbon on the Middle Ages and wanted to bridge that to our times. It was clear the period I was lacking was one of deep social transformations brought about by European industrialization. So I turned to Encyclopaedia Britannica, where I found, in the references, this wonderful book.
Cipolla is a scholarly writer who masters his craft. This is a book for the general reader, which translates complex economic concepts into understandable words, in a clear prose, generously complemented with maps, tables, charts and graphs. About 40% of the 350-plus pages is made of by reference notes for the more erudite reader.
The book is formally structured in two parts. In part one, Cipolla presents his reader with a static view of Europe's economy and its social preconditions at the start of his narrative. He deals with the demand side; the factors of production; and productivity and production. In part two, essaying a dynamic viewpoint, he deals with the urban revolution; population trends and plagues; technology; enterprise, credit, and money; production, incomes, and consumption; the emergence of the modern age; and the changing balance of economic power in Europe. Throughout the text, Cipolla masterfully shows how intricate the patchwork of historical causation can be. He deconstructs several simplistic hypotheses, and while providing ample discussions furnished with evidence and references, his discussions are not unnecessarily long and only add fluidity and a fast pace to his narrative.
But the main quality of Cipolla's writing is that his powerful command of both historical detail and sources, and his ability to see the big picture and present it in human terms make the author a rare example of wisdom. It is in his wit and empathy for common folks' feelings and in his confessions of how historians cannot pin the point as to why exactly a people - Florentines, Dutch or English - suddenly turn inspired in all sectors of life to produce awesome works, from a thriving economy, technological inventions, works of art, military prowess and literary genius, he hints at the most human, the most pungent realities that seem to remain yet hidden in the cold facts of sources and scholarly work, but try to sprint out and tell us something about ourselves and the indomitable character of human spirit.
This is a book that inspires as much as it teaches, that provokes reflection as much as gives information. It does show some inaccuracies, as when the author says the Dutch market in the sixteenth century had quotations for Brazilian coffee, even if large scale production of coffee was introduced in this country only in the 19th century, or when he, seemingly following the state of the art in the time of writing, said almost no American silver or gold were taken by the Spanish to China via the Pacific route, something historians have recently started to doubt. Yet, anyone reading Plutarch or Gibbon or Thucydides will find errors there too; a careful reader will find there additional reasons to appreciate such masterpieces of History, to which Cipolla's book is a humble but deserving companion.
April 15, 2015
Analitico senza essere pedante. Arguto senza essere superficiale. Intelligente senza essere noioso.
Con Armi, acciaio e malattie di Diamond e La ricchezza e la poverta’ delle nazioni di Landes forma una trilogia perfetta.
Con Armi, acciaio e malattie di Diamond e La ricchezza e la poverta’ delle nazioni di Landes forma una trilogia perfetta.
October 31, 2024
Pretty good. The first part is arguably the best economical lesson I’ve ever had (from a person who knows nothing about economics). Perfect for someone who needs a general context about economy in early modern Europe. The biggest flaw is probably not touching a lot in the social vector, but nevertheless it’s a pretty solid work.
September 29, 2023
This book is not what I expected. It was even more nerdy than anticipated, which says a lot, but it did provide many interesting nuggets on the formation of cities, population growth, technology and industrialization. Cipolla fails to present facts that clearly tell an ongoing story but, rather, lets the detailed facts guide the story telling. This is a major drawback of this book. For example, he does an excellent job speaking briefly about why Spain didn’t stay a world power, presented compelling and detailed facts about Holland’s amazing success but fails to give enough background on the rise of England to become a world power.
The detailed facts, statistics and charts are mind blowing: yearly exports of woolen short clothes from London from 1500-1550, English trade in the 1700’s, real wages of English building trades from 1264-1700. The author points out that in the 1500’s, Poland had 15,000 priests and 6,900 monks and nuns, comprising about half percent of all working. Many books of these years miss the complications of the economy. He points out that another trade Moses by many - and underrepresented in official statistics- is the oldest one: prostitution. He says an estimated 10,000 to 40,000 prostitutes works in Rome, a center for such enjoyment.
The book also disclosed unique facts, such as when different European countries started census (England 1801, France same year, Spain 1768, but then kit regularly until 1857). It’s novel that the author says in the eleventh century, there was no distinction between public and private. It makes sense but I’ve never seen that point raised. Cipolla’s assertion that most public revolts occurred when people were hungry also was an important point and refocuses much of history. He also appropriately raises that the power of the church was ever present in preindustrial Europe. Finally, the author makes the point that child labor, highlighted during the age of industrialization long occurred.
Everything changed with the rise of cities in Europe in the tenth and twelfth centuries. People were moving from rural areas to cities to seek their fortunes and escape a bleak life. In Germany, the saying was: “The air of the city makes one free.” This was a turning point of world history. When people crossed the gates into the city, different laws ruled. There was increased cooperation in cities through guilds and universities.
Europe was also growing during this time. While in 1000, total population of duty, including Russo, was under 35 million, it shot up to over 80 million by the 1340’s. The author reminds the reader that the Black Plague of 1348-1349 took out 25 million lives. Over the next century and a half, population stabilized despite wars and other plagues. Older age of marriage and bachelorhood held down the births. Society rules helped this. Many schools did not admit married men. Population in many cities outstripped the technology to allow for safe living. Water-wells were unsafe, sanitation was lacking, and rats ran the streets. Strangely plagues disappeared from the scene. There were no more epidemics in Italy after 1657, in England or France after the 1660’s or in Germany after the 1670’s.
Expansion was occurring throughout Europe, although in different ways and degrees. Trade helped to lift up everyone, although agriculture was the basis of the economy. The economy was as more complicated than often discussed with physicians, notaries, judges, and shoemakers and merchants. The book mentions there were 146 bakeries in Florence. All this had an impact inside many homes with people starting to use individual plates, the use of fireplaces instead of fires in the middle of the house, and chairs instead of benches.
The author states that there were nearly no technology advances between 2500 BC in 500 years after Christ was born. The dark ages saw innovations including the wind mill, navigational instruments, printing mills, fun powder, paper, mills, stone cutting machines, and so much more. Technology impacted different at different times. From the 1200-1500’s, Italy was the leader. In the 1600s, England and Dutch took the leadership. The author included a real cool map indicating when various European cities secured printing presses.
Technology improvements were enhanced by organizational and business advances. Governments also used restrictive immigration policies to trap skills needed in a community. For example, a skilled caulker who left Venice in the 1460’s risked six years in prison plus financial fines. Conversely, incoming immigrants with “a good mind” was the success of countries like England, Holland, and Sweden in the 1600-1700’s. The author points out that “the qualities that make people tolerate also make them receptive to new ideas. “
Currency also increased with the growth of cities. It was exclusively metallic until nearly 1600. What could be bought increased and decreased with inflation.
In a Straightforward way, the author explains the fall of Spain. Simply put Spain game resources through gold and silver from the Americas. They did not use it to build up their capital or their worker’s supply. Once the gold and silver were, Spain started to decline. while it was Richard one point, it was never actually developed. He also explains that Italy’s economic decline is far more complex than out of speed. A large part of the problem that Italy is located in the place or Spain, France, what is now called Germany continue to engage in war activities that hurt the development of the country. The author explains that the girls also were more concerned about keeping up wages, and they were a competition. That hurt them later, when other nations were able to do similar work from less costs. Arthur also complains that taxation rates for too high, driving away competition. Finally, 1630 central northern Italy devastated by a play. 1.1 million people time population I’m about 4 million people.
The discussion about Holland’s success was as enlightening as the coverage of England’s ultimate success was disappointing. The author shared just how many ways Holland used their brilliance to improve upon imports and provide a value-added product - Japanese copper, Baltic grain, even Italian wine. The Dutch system was to improve, add value and trade where others were not permitted like when Japan turned inwards for 200 years; they still traded with the Dutch. And, at one point Holland had the largest shipping fleet. It was quoted that Holland would have 15-16,000 ships in 1669 when England had 3-4,000 and France had 5-600. In addition to diversifying, they also had a competitive advantage using cheap wind energy. And when the Dutch could not compete financially, they lowered their costs, be it fabrics or paintings.
Sadly, the author did not do a complete job explaining England’s problems rise to be a world power. Cipolla spoke of special trading partners, an increase in population, the importance of immigration, and the rise of industrialization. His case falls short. He should have spoken about English’s strength and continued growing economy in the way he did with Holland’s success.
This book is worth a read, although it is uneven.
The detailed facts, statistics and charts are mind blowing: yearly exports of woolen short clothes from London from 1500-1550, English trade in the 1700’s, real wages of English building trades from 1264-1700. The author points out that in the 1500’s, Poland had 15,000 priests and 6,900 monks and nuns, comprising about half percent of all working. Many books of these years miss the complications of the economy. He points out that another trade Moses by many - and underrepresented in official statistics- is the oldest one: prostitution. He says an estimated 10,000 to 40,000 prostitutes works in Rome, a center for such enjoyment.
The book also disclosed unique facts, such as when different European countries started census (England 1801, France same year, Spain 1768, but then kit regularly until 1857). It’s novel that the author says in the eleventh century, there was no distinction between public and private. It makes sense but I’ve never seen that point raised. Cipolla’s assertion that most public revolts occurred when people were hungry also was an important point and refocuses much of history. He also appropriately raises that the power of the church was ever present in preindustrial Europe. Finally, the author makes the point that child labor, highlighted during the age of industrialization long occurred.
Everything changed with the rise of cities in Europe in the tenth and twelfth centuries. People were moving from rural areas to cities to seek their fortunes and escape a bleak life. In Germany, the saying was: “The air of the city makes one free.” This was a turning point of world history. When people crossed the gates into the city, different laws ruled. There was increased cooperation in cities through guilds and universities.
Europe was also growing during this time. While in 1000, total population of duty, including Russo, was under 35 million, it shot up to over 80 million by the 1340’s. The author reminds the reader that the Black Plague of 1348-1349 took out 25 million lives. Over the next century and a half, population stabilized despite wars and other plagues. Older age of marriage and bachelorhood held down the births. Society rules helped this. Many schools did not admit married men. Population in many cities outstripped the technology to allow for safe living. Water-wells were unsafe, sanitation was lacking, and rats ran the streets. Strangely plagues disappeared from the scene. There were no more epidemics in Italy after 1657, in England or France after the 1660’s or in Germany after the 1670’s.
Expansion was occurring throughout Europe, although in different ways and degrees. Trade helped to lift up everyone, although agriculture was the basis of the economy. The economy was as more complicated than often discussed with physicians, notaries, judges, and shoemakers and merchants. The book mentions there were 146 bakeries in Florence. All this had an impact inside many homes with people starting to use individual plates, the use of fireplaces instead of fires in the middle of the house, and chairs instead of benches.
The author states that there were nearly no technology advances between 2500 BC in 500 years after Christ was born. The dark ages saw innovations including the wind mill, navigational instruments, printing mills, fun powder, paper, mills, stone cutting machines, and so much more. Technology impacted different at different times. From the 1200-1500’s, Italy was the leader. In the 1600s, England and Dutch took the leadership. The author included a real cool map indicating when various European cities secured printing presses.
Technology improvements were enhanced by organizational and business advances. Governments also used restrictive immigration policies to trap skills needed in a community. For example, a skilled caulker who left Venice in the 1460’s risked six years in prison plus financial fines. Conversely, incoming immigrants with “a good mind” was the success of countries like England, Holland, and Sweden in the 1600-1700’s. The author points out that “the qualities that make people tolerate also make them receptive to new ideas. “
Currency also increased with the growth of cities. It was exclusively metallic until nearly 1600. What could be bought increased and decreased with inflation.
In a Straightforward way, the author explains the fall of Spain. Simply put Spain game resources through gold and silver from the Americas. They did not use it to build up their capital or their worker’s supply. Once the gold and silver were, Spain started to decline. while it was Richard one point, it was never actually developed. He also explains that Italy’s economic decline is far more complex than out of speed. A large part of the problem that Italy is located in the place or Spain, France, what is now called Germany continue to engage in war activities that hurt the development of the country. The author explains that the girls also were more concerned about keeping up wages, and they were a competition. That hurt them later, when other nations were able to do similar work from less costs. Arthur also complains that taxation rates for too high, driving away competition. Finally, 1630 central northern Italy devastated by a play. 1.1 million people time population I’m about 4 million people.
The discussion about Holland’s success was as enlightening as the coverage of England’s ultimate success was disappointing. The author shared just how many ways Holland used their brilliance to improve upon imports and provide a value-added product - Japanese copper, Baltic grain, even Italian wine. The Dutch system was to improve, add value and trade where others were not permitted like when Japan turned inwards for 200 years; they still traded with the Dutch. And, at one point Holland had the largest shipping fleet. It was quoted that Holland would have 15-16,000 ships in 1669 when England had 3-4,000 and France had 5-600. In addition to diversifying, they also had a competitive advantage using cheap wind energy. And when the Dutch could not compete financially, they lowered their costs, be it fabrics or paintings.
Sadly, the author did not do a complete job explaining England’s problems rise to be a world power. Cipolla spoke of special trading partners, an increase in population, the importance of immigration, and the rise of industrialization. His case falls short. He should have spoken about English’s strength and continued growing economy in the way he did with Holland’s success.
This book is worth a read, although it is uneven.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 5, 2020
Superficial with bland, cursory treatment of the times and economics. Nothing particularly interesting or novel to anyone with any background in the era. Largest fault was unsubstantiated "causes and effects". Not awful.
July 26, 2025
Infarinatura economica ben fatta con una fracca di fonti e statistiche, inoltre tante storie interessanti che fanno da contorno rendendo la lettura piacevole. Mancano riferimenti a movimenti di massa, ritmi e produttività del lavoro così come descrizioni della curtis e in generale della realtà rurale che viene citata molto alla lontana.
Nell'ultima pagina c'è una frase che mi ha colpito riguardo i cambiamenti sociali, climatici e politici portati dall'industrializzazione:
"Sotto il peso di questi problemi le vecchie strutture sociali e culturali scricchiolano paurosamente. Gemono i conservatori, che non capiscono quel che sta capitando e che si illudono di mantenere in vita un passato che è già morto."
Nell'ultima pagina c'è una frase che mi ha colpito riguardo i cambiamenti sociali, climatici e politici portati dall'industrializzazione:
"Sotto il peso di questi problemi le vecchie strutture sociali e culturali scricchiolano paurosamente. Gemono i conservatori, che non capiscono quel che sta capitando e che si illudono di mantenere in vita un passato che è già morto."
August 31, 2025
Economic historians are so boring.
This book makes important contributions to the historiography of medieval and Renaissance Europe from the economic perspective, sure. But I think economic historians believe that, as an interdisciplinary methodology, they need to be extremely flat in their writing. Facts can and should be written interesting—but this definitely reads like historical research from the 70s.
I didn’t actually read the whole thing, especially because much of it is outdated, but overall I give it two stars because it is not fun as a read. It does have a wealth of charts.
This book makes important contributions to the historiography of medieval and Renaissance Europe from the economic perspective, sure. But I think economic historians believe that, as an interdisciplinary methodology, they need to be extremely flat in their writing. Facts can and should be written interesting—but this definitely reads like historical research from the 70s.
I didn’t actually read the whole thing, especially because much of it is outdated, but overall I give it two stars because it is not fun as a read. It does have a wealth of charts.
May 6, 2019
I started reading it a long time ago and suddenly I stopped. Few days ago I returned to read I finally finished. What a marvelous book! For me who love History and Economics it was a pleasure. A gift. The book is fantastic. A deep dive in knowledge. It remembered me many things I had already read and taught me many others. The relationship between human capacity, nature, persistence, respect to the institutions, and among other qualities a tolerant society made some countries get developed.
Want to read
January 2, 2022REF: Artículo "Black Death, COVID, and Why We Keep Telling the Myth of a Renaissance Golden Age and Bad Middle Ages" en el blog Ex Urbe
October 23, 2023
Fue un avance muy importante para la historiografia económica pero debe tratarse con sumo cuidado debido a que tiene ideas o conceptos que han sido rebatidos, como el concepto de china cómo acaparador de plata.
January 2, 2021
Letto per sostenere un esame di Storia Economica ma si è rivelata una lettura piacevole e ricca di contenuti che ho trovato utili anche dopo l’esame.
January 24, 2020
Cipolla provides an interesting look at the European economy before it was industrialized. The author uses graphs, tables, and data to give a picture of the socioeconomic conditions in the continent in the early 1000's.
July 10, 2016
L'ho letto solo perché avevo adorato Allegro ma non troppo. Con Le leggi fondamentali della stupidità umana. Così sono andata a recuperare qualche altro libro dell'autore.
Ho fatto un corso di Storia Economica all'uni e mi era piaciuto parecchio. Il prof, Bruno Polese, era fantastico. Poi, dicono che si sia incarognito ma io ho dei bellissimi ricordi delle sue lezioni.
Digressioni a parte. La prima parte del libro, quella prettamente economica è stata forse un po' pesante da leggere ma c'erano un sacco di dettagli sulla vita nell'Europa pre-industriale. E c'erano dei commenti, molto poco accademici, dell'autore che da soli valevano tutto il libro. Ad esempio:
La seconda parte, un po' più storica, è decisamente più scorrevole. Mi è piaciuto particolarmente il paragrafo dedicato al Secolo d'Oro dell'Olanda. Inoltre le ultime due pagine, in cui l'autore parla della propensione europea all'autodistruzione, sono attualissime.
Contenta di averlo letto, anche se devo confessare di essermi addormentata un paio di volte durante la lettura. OK, ero io stanchissima, non era il libro ad essere noioso. Leggerò anche qualcos'altro di Cipolla. L'ho già richiesto in biblio.
Ho fatto un corso di Storia Economica all'uni e mi era piaciuto parecchio. Il prof, Bruno Polese, era fantastico. Poi, dicono che si sia incarognito ma io ho dei bellissimi ricordi delle sue lezioni.
Digressioni a parte. La prima parte del libro, quella prettamente economica è stata forse un po' pesante da leggere ma c'erano un sacco di dettagli sulla vita nell'Europa pre-industriale. E c'erano dei commenti, molto poco accademici, dell'autore che da soli valevano tutto il libro. Ad esempio:
Nelle nostre società industriali noi consideriamo come popolazione attiva la popolazione nel gruppo di età 15-64. Anche questa è una definizione abbastanza arbitraria, derivante dal duplice fatto che a) in molti Paesi l’obbligo scolastico per i giovani si estende fino al quindicesimo compleanno, e che b) il sessantacinquesimo compleanno è per molte professioni il limite di pensionabilità. In realtà però ci sono individui che cominciano a lavorare molto dopo aver compiuto i 15 anni d’età e altri che cominciano prima. C’è gente che va in pensione prima di aver compiuto il sessantacinquesimo anno e c’è gente che lavora ancora a settant’anni. C’è gente che non ha mai lavorato e ci sono casi come quello della burocrazia italiana la quale rappresenta un campionario pittoresco di gente che si trova nel gruppo d’età 15-65 e prende regolarmente uno stipendio, ma la cui aggregazione alla «popolazione attiva» è frutto di una rosea violenza fatta dalla statistica alla realtà.L'omino, già nel 1974, aveva perfettamente ragione.
Sotto molti rispetti il contribuito del clero al benessere della comunità non è molto diverso da quello dello psichiatra nella società odierna ed è stato osservato che nei Paesi dove la gente ricorre meno al confessore finisce col ricorrere di più allo psichiatra.Potrebbe starci anche questa.
Stabilire il numero delle donnine allegre è un’impresa disperata. Anzitutto la categoria si presta male a una precisa definizione perché tra i due estremi di «donna onesta» e «prostituta pubblica» esiste tutta una vasta gamma di condizione intermedie dai contorni confusi.Questa non sarebbe proprio piaciuta alla mia ex migliore amica.
La seconda parte, un po' più storica, è decisamente più scorrevole. Mi è piaciuto particolarmente il paragrafo dedicato al Secolo d'Oro dell'Olanda. Inoltre le ultime due pagine, in cui l'autore parla della propensione europea all'autodistruzione, sono attualissime.
Contenta di averlo letto, anche se devo confessare di essermi addormentata un paio di volte durante la lettura. OK, ero io stanchissima, non era il libro ad essere noioso. Leggerò anche qualcos'altro di Cipolla. L'ho già richiesto in biblio.
August 17, 2015
Another excellent piece of research, analysis and insight by Cipolla. Considering he takes a scope of hundreds of years through an area with little hard evidence for the earlier time frames, this is an astoundingly concinving read. The later time frames, post 1450 or so, with better records and documentaion, are particularly well done. His analysis of the ride of the Low Countries and England around the time of the fall of Italy as a major manufacturing center is less convincing than more recent prefernces suggest, which regard Italian decline as related to their inability to reach into the Atlantic trade, a factor that England and Holland were not limited by.
July 27, 2017
Ho letto questo libro per motivi accademici. Premetto che storia non è il cardine del mio corso di laurea e che quindi mi sono avvicinata al libro con perplessità e pregiudizi. Mi sono dovuta ricredere, sono stati una lettura e uno studio piacevoli, grazie a uno stile molto narrativo e scorrevole. Tutto il libro è condito da aneddoti storici che non conoscevo e che ogni volta mi facevano esclamare "ma dai, non lo sapevo!".
Consiglio quindi il libro a chiunque sia interessato al tema o sia semplicemente un'anima curiosa e consiglio ai colleghi studenti di non farsi spaventare né dal titolo né dal numero di pagine: ne varrà la pena.
Consiglio quindi il libro a chiunque sia interessato al tema o sia semplicemente un'anima curiosa e consiglio ai colleghi studenti di non farsi spaventare né dal titolo né dal numero di pagine: ne varrà la pena.
July 29, 2016
This was a really fascinating look at economy in the Middle Ages, Renaissance and Reofrmation. Not only did it look at the economy and the ways it shifted in this 700 year period, but it discusses the very early stages of what became the Industrial Revolution, making a great case for saying that without these 700 years, the Industrial Revolution could not have emerged. Great read for grads, a bit heady for undergrads, but overall excellent.
February 15, 2025
df (p. 97)
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