The European Union (EU) is unique: 27 countries have come together in an (almost) economic union, giving up sovereignty over trade, migration, and money (euro area members) and adopting common policies related to agriculture, regions, competition, energy, and climate change. This course uses economic tools and empirical studies to understand the economics benefits and costs of creating a common market and a monetary union. It assesses whether common policies meet their stated goals such as reducing inequalities or anticompetitive behaviors. It also evaluates the EU's economic response to the euro crisis, immigration, and the war in Ukraine.

Drawing on the expertise of distinguished Princeton faculty and visitors, this seminar aims to provide a broad, multidisciplinary perspective on central debates in European culture and society that remain urgent in the present and expand beyond geographic and temporal limits. It serves as the core course for the Program in European Cultural Studies (ECS) and the Program in Contemporary European Politics and Society (EPS).