Module Convenor: Benjamin Smith

 

This is a WIISP module which will run in Venice during the Summer term.

This module aims to tell the story of the rise and fall of large-scale organised crime groups during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Students will be asked to engage with literature from history, criminology, and political science.

Two big stories dominate the history of the past two centuries - the formation of the modern nation state and the global rollout of liberal capitalism. Organised criminal groups have been integral to both. They have taxed and protected what the state can't or won't. And they have pioneered forms of trade and economic administration when legal corporations have remained risk averse. This course introduces students to the world of the Italian and American mafias, the Japanese Yakuza, the Chinese Tong gangs, and the Mexican cartels and places them at the center of the story of the modern world.

Syllabus

1. What is organized crime?
2. Early forms of organized crime
3. The Japanese Yakuza
4. The Chinese Tongs
5. The Italian Mafia 1: Beginnings
6. The Italian Mafia 2: Smuggling
7. The Italian Mafia 3: The State Session
8. Globalisation
9. The Columbian Cartels
10. The Mexican Cartels

 

Assessment

• 3000 word essay (80%)
• Class Presentation (20%)