Courses

The Covid-19 pandemic showed that states had various ways of mobilizing their populations and imposing regulations. Some resorted to authoritarian measures, others to suasion, voluntary participation, or social pressure. People's compliance or resistance to these requirements greatly varied across countries and regions, as in the case of face-mask or vaccination mandates. Whatever the circumstances, trust in the state and law obedience played a crucial role for anti-epidemic policy and its effectiveness.

This raises a fundamental historical issue about how states build legitimacy and compliance over time and space, despite facing numerous popular resistances and oppositions. How are state obligations such as vaccination, conscription, taxation, compulsory education, social insurance, etc., implemented, respected, or contested? Is it a mere story of violence and power, or does it also imply collective negotiation, voluntary participation, and consent? Why are some states fiercely resisted by their population, while others inspire trust and compliance?

The goal of this discussion seminar is to explore this puzzle through the lenses of comparative and global history, in a longue durée perspective and in close interaction with social sciences (anthropology, political science, sociology, and psychology). Each session will be devoted to one facet of the state, bringing together European, American, and imperial situations and case studies.