Part A

Medieval Europe was a period of profound social, political, and religious transformation, shaped by institutions such as feudalism, the expansion of the Frankish kingdom, and the Crusades. Reflect on one of the following questions in your discussion post:

1. The Frankish Kingdom: How did the early Frankish kings, such as Charlemagne, shape medieval Europe’s political and cultural landscape? What do you think was their most enduring legacy, and why?
2. Feudalism: Feudalism was a defining system in medieval Europe, influencing social hierarchy and governance. How did this system structure medieval society, and what were its strengths and weaknesses? Can you draw any comparisons to other hierarchical systems you have studied?
3. The Crusades: The Crusades were both religious and political endeavors with significant consequences for Europe and the Middle East. In your view, were the Crusades more about faith, politics, or economic gain? Support your argument with examples.

Peer Response Guidelines:

• Engage with at least one peer by offering additional insights, drawing comparisons to other societies, or posing thoughtful questions.
• Consider discussing modern perceptions of feudalism, the Crusades, or the Frankish kings and how they have evolved over time.
• Be respectful and open-minded when addressing differing viewpoints, especially on religious and historical interpretation topics.

Part B

Medieval Africa was home to vibrant and diverse civilizations, yet historical narratives have often overlooked or misrepresented their achievements. Reflect on the material youve read about kingdoms such as Ghana, Mali, Songhai, Ethiopia, Great Zimbabwe, and the Swahili city-states. Consider the following questions in your post:

1. Identify and Analyze: Choose one of the kingdoms or city-states discussed and analyze its significance in medieval African and global history. What key achievements or characteristics stand out to you, and why do you think they were historically overlooked or undervalued in traditional narratives?
2. Bias and Ethnocentrism: How have biases and ethnocentrism shaped historical accounts of medieval Africa? Provide examples from the material and discuss how a more inclusive narrative can enrich our understanding of world history.
3. Gender and Religion: Reflect on the roles of gender and religion in one or more of these societies. How do these elements compare to other medieval civilizations you have studied? What surprises you about these dynamics?

How did the industrial Revolution change working conditions, transportation systems, and social life in European societies during the nineteenth century, and what were its long-term impacts on economic development and urbanization?

Please do each assignment on each seperate document

9.1

Reading Response

Instructions for Reading Response: Please respond to the questions below after having read the readings for this week. Your answers can be short or bullet points.

1. Identify at least one article that you found challenging or interesting and describe why.
2. List at least 3-5 questions you have about the overall material you just read.
3. Thinking about the readings and videos for the week altogether, identify and connect 3-5 common themes.

Readings

The Fall of Rome

1. Joshua J. Mark, Roman Empire, World History Encyclopedia, March 22, 2018, .
2. Evan Andrews, 8 Reasons Why Rome Fell, HISTORY, August 11, 2023, .

Roman Empire Conversion to Christianity

1. Rebecca Denova, Constantines Conversion to Christianity, World History Encyclopedia, May 10, 2021, .
2. Dr. Nancy Ross, “Introduction to the Middle Ages,” in Smarthistory, August 8, 2015, accessed August 25, 2023, .
3. Dr. Allen Farber, “Early Christian art and architecture after Constantine,” in Smarthistory, August 8, 2015, accessed August 17, 2023, .

Introduction to European Christianity

1. Dr. Beth Harris, Dr. Steven Zucker and Dr. Nancy Ross, “Christianity, an introduction,” in Smarthistory, August 8, 2015, accessed August 17, 2023, .
2. The British Museum, “Anglo-Saxon England,” in Smarthistory, February 28, 2017, accessed August 17, 2023, .
3. The British Museum, “Decoding Anglo-Saxon art,” in Smarthistory, February 28, 2017, accessed August 17, 2023, .

9.2 Constantine The Great Explained in 10 minutes

What is Constantine primarily renowned for?

1. Define Constantinople and its historical significance.
2. How would you describe the political environment during Constantine’s formative years?
3. In which year was Constantine officially declared emperor?
4. Could you elaborate on the Battle of Milvian Bridge, its significance, and how it played a pivotal role in Constantine’s conversion to Christianity?
5. What was the Edict of Milan, and why was it crucial in Constantine’s reign?
6. How did Constantine strategically leverage religion for personal political gains, power, recognition, and respect?
7. Explain the Council of Nicaea and the establishment of the Nicene Creed. Why is this development significant?
8. What motivated Constantine to relocate the Roman capital from the ancient City of Rome to Constantinople?
9. What attractive incentives did Constantine offer to encourage people to migrate to the new capital, Constantinople?
10. Reflecting on the information presented, is there anything you gained or any additional thoughts or questions you have?

9.3 The Colossus of Constantine represents a noteworthy shift in Roman art and beyond. It departs from the previously embraced traditional Greco-Roman artistic conventions in the region, leaning towards abstraction. Following Constantine, much of early Christian Art also adopted an abstracted style. In this style, the divine is no longer portrayed as an idealized human form but rather as an idealized abstract divine force.

Please take a moment to view the video linked beneath Constantine’s statue, and read about the Spear Bearer. In what ways does Constantine’s statue deviate from the classical Greek traditions? Provide a comparison and analysis of both statues, highlighting their similarities and differences. Your response must be at least a paragraph long (6-10 sentences).

Figure 1 Roman marble copy of a Greek bronze, c. 450440 B.C.E. (Museo Archaeologico Nazionale, Naples; photo: , CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

Figure 2 c. 312315 C.E., marble (Palazzo dei Conservatori, Musei Capitolini, Rome; photo: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

Students will create a photo project and a 2-page-long typed reflection on their project. Responses must be in MLA format.

Purpose:

• Explore through photos and writing how culture, art, and ideas of the U.S. are represented through your daily life.

Instructions:

• Using the literary, visual, performing, and culinary arts that we have learned/explored so far, document versions of these pertaining to your personal daily life.
• Use at least 1/2 page for each category. (Literary, Visual, Performing, Culinary)
• Reflect on the photos and in your paper, write how these connect to the material in class. Talk about your experience and why you chose to document these specific instances.
• Students are to submit their assignment by May 20, 11:59 p.m., using the submission link on this page.
• Use citations and supporting evidence from texts/videos in your Modules when necessary.
• Include at least 4 photos, at least one for each category. (Literary, Visual, Performing, Culinary) These are not included in the page length.
• These are original photos, taken by you.

Humanities history refers to the academic study of human culture, ideas, and self-expression. It traces human development from ancient classical foundations to modern interdisciplinary programs.

Overview

A critical commentary is a short essay that introduces a historical document. It provides basic information about what the document is, what cultural and historical context influenced its author in creating it, and why youthe historianbelieve it was important, convincing, effective, or ineffective. Your commentary will be evaluated on your selection of direct evidence, creativity of interpretation, depth of historical context, and clarity of language.

For each critical commentary, you will write about a primary source document of your choice. Please use

document from the list below (from ).

Your commentary should include a thesis statement and make an argument about the source. For more info, check out this

Requirements and Scoring

Papers will be scored on the following criteria (150 points total):

STYLE (25 points)

• Requirements:
  • 800-900 words plain 11- or 12-point font
  • Include a meaningful title
  • Identify the name, author, and date of the document
  • Clear thesis statement near the beginning of the essay
    • Consist of multiple readable paragraphs Include the phrase “large animal veterinarian”
  • Your commentary should give your reader a sense of the documents style through the use of at least three direct quotations, properly quoted
    • • Quotations should not be longer than 1-2 lines
• Do NOT include:
  • Title page
  • Text that youve copied and pasted from elsewhere without properly quoting and citing your source
  • AI-generated text

IDENTIFICATION (25 points)

Provide a succinct and accurate summary of the document, including relevant details about its date and place of origin, authorship, genre, and argument or purpose.

CONTEXT (50 points)

Identify the broader historical context of the document and explain its relationship to the societal issues or events of its era. What is the historical big picture that your reader must grasp in order to properly understand the document? What was the authors purpose in creating the document? Include convincing quotes, information from the textbook and lecture, or other course materials to demonstrate this.

Tip: each of these primary source documents correspond to a specific chapter in the textbook, which will provide helpful context. To find out which chapter your document pairs with, look in the URL/web address. For example, the URL for Henry George’s Progress and Poverty is http://www.americanyawp.com/reader/16-capital-and-labor/henry-george-progress-and-poverty-selections-1879/. Since the URL includes “16-capital-and-labor”, you know that it goes with Chapter 16.

ANALYSIS (50 points)

In history, analysis is when you explain the meaning and significance of a source or a piece of evidence (quotes, facts, etc.).

Clearly state your evaluation of the authors argument or purpose in your thesis statement. What does the author mean? What were they trying to accomplish? Who is their intended audience? Why is this source historically significant? Do you agree with the author’s position? Are they leaving out important details? In the body of the paper, prove your thesis with convincing detail from the document and its historical context.

Remember, historical analysis is different than literary analysis! Tools from your English or Rhetoric classes like pathos/logos/ethos are not particularly useful here. In History, primary source analysis focuses more on what a source can tell us about the past, both on a micro scale (what was happening with these individuals?) and on a macro scale (does this source give us larger insights into history?).

Analysis resources:

• (files)

Sample outline

If you are not sure how to structure your commentary, this sample outline might be a helpful guide. You are not required to follow this format, it is just one way of approaching the assignment.

• Paragraph 1: Introduction
  • Who created this document? When?
  • What kind of document is this (newspaper article, speech, letter, etc.)?
  • Who is the intended audience?
  • Why is it historically significant? (i.e. why do we care?)
  • What else was going on at this time that would be helpful to know when reading this document (historical context)?
• Paragraph 2: Summary
  • What are the key points in the document?
  • What is the author trying to communicate? What is their perspective?
  • this paragraph is a good place to include quotations
• Paragraph 3: Analysis
  • Does the author do a good job presenting their case?
  • Is this source reliable? What are its limitations?
  • Do you agree with the author’s points? Why or why not?
  • Concluding sentence: why does this matter? How can it contribute to our understanding of history?

    Sources to use:

  • WW ll Slides

  So use:

• Primary Source (main source)
  • Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki speech/document:
    Harry Truman Announcing the Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima (1945)

This is what you analyze and quote from directly.

1. Chapter 24 of The American Yawp
   Because your topic is WWII.
   Use this for:
• WWII context
• Pacific War
• reasons for using the bomb
• U.S.Japan conflict
• end of the war
1. WWII slides from your course
   These are VERY useful because professors usually want lecture material included.
2. Assigned WWII videos from your module:
• Crash Course – WWII
• Hiroshima Bombing Remembered By a Survivor

The survivor video is especially strong because it gives you perspective and helps with ANALYSIS:

• propaganda
• civilian suffering
• morality
• historical significance

Your paper will probably focus on:

• Truman trying to justify the bombing
• the U.S. presenting the bomb as necessary to end the war
• the document reflecting American wartime attitudes
• whether Truman leaves out civilian destruction and long-term effects

Strong analysis topics:

• audience = American public + world powers
• purpose = justify the bombing and show U.S. military strength
• historical significance = beginning of nuclear age + Cold War implications

A very strong thesis direction would be something like:

Trumans announcement framed the atomic bombing as a necessary military action to end World War II quickly, but the document also reveals how the U.S. government minimized civilian suffering while demonstrating Americas new global power.

And dont forget somewhere in the essay to naturally include:

large animal veterinarian

because thats clearly an instruction-check phrase.

Make sure your analysis is throughout the essay, not only in Paragraph 3. History professors usually want interpretation woven into the whole paper.

Also, avoid making it sound too modern/opinionated like:

America was evil

Instead keep it historical and analytical:

The document minimizes civilian casualties while emphasizing military necessity.

Module 2 Forum Posting (Appox. 300 to 350 words)Post By End of Module. Please Post Word Count

• 1) View this video on The Happiness Hypothesis
• (5 minutes). Reflect and respond to how this could relate to your own life/spiritual journey and search for happiness. A Resource to help think more about it is here not required (100-150 words)
• 2) Find the passage online or in a physical Bible in any translation (scholars use the NRSV) where Jesus says, “the last shall be first, and the first last” Matthew 20:1-16. How does this phrase relate to the idea that Jesus is a philosopher? (100-150 words)3) Respond positively to 2 postings. (50 words each)Post your word count.

Ans = Palm leaves and brich bark.Manuscripts is handwritten records .Write on palm leaves and brich bark .It is a source of history .

Battles of great leaders

First, watch this video. Please note that these are supplemental, as they reinforce your textbook. You should always start with the textbook, as that can be cited within your posts when you use quotes and/or statistics.

Watch videos:

Use the REQUIRED textbooks listed in the READING Materials section of the CONTENT area and showcase the history discovered by specifying the exact PAGE in the book that you found the HISTORY discussed. You may use additional scholarly sources, but the textbook must be used and connected with exact pages to show that reading and comprehension work has been done for this week. No formal citation is required for these discussions, but please review the prompt carefully for follow-ups and research-based essay tasks. As you should be referring to your textbook, you do NOT need formal footnotes, as the only item needed is the page number. Whereas formal citations require more specifics.

Please answer one of the instructor-provided questions below. The answers should come from your textbook, the lectures, videos, and then (if you have already cited your textbook), you may include any research you conducted in the APUS Library. Please be advised that the Library contains thousands of sources (ranging from dictionaries to peer-reviewed journals). Reflect upon your understanding of sources and think critically about which are the strongest (if you are using sources from the library). Do NOT pursue vague websites, and refrain from using the internet for this Discussion.

1. InPlessy v. Ferguson, what were the arguments for “separate but equal” legislation? What were the arguments against this legislation? What is a dissent? What are the implications of Harlan’s dissent? What is Harlan’s fundamental objection to the decision? What is Harlan’s view of legal distinctions based on racial considerations? What does he feel will be the consequences of this decision? What does the Court say is the underlying fallacy of the plaintiff’s argument? Give three examples during this time in which state legislation sustained separation.
2. Explain: Legislation “is powerless to eradicate racial instincts or to abolish distinctions based upon physical differences, and the attempt to do so can only result in accentuating the difficulties of the present situation.” What effect didPlessy v. Fergusonhave?
3. How and why had black people, particularly in the South, been subjected to second-class citizenship by 1900? Why were Jim Crow laws predominantly in the South? How did Jim Crow happen? Make sure you read about thePlessycase.
4. Analyze how African Americans were challenging white supremacy during Reconstruction and the first years of the 20th century. Make sure you read about thePlessycase.