Book dossier

Measuring up

by Moramay López-Alonso

Tracing the high levels of poverty and inequality that Mexico faced in the mid-twentieth century, this book provides a perspective on living standards in Mexico prior to the first measurement of income distribution in 1957. By offering an account of material living conditions and their repercussions on biological standards of living between 1850 and 1950, it sheds new light on the life of the marginalised during this period. It shows that new methodologies allow us to examine the history of individuals who were not integrated into the formal economy, and assesses how a large portion of the population was affected by piecemeal policies and flaws in the process of economic modernisation and growth.