Pick two of the assigned primary documents—they should not be from the same study sheet. They can come from different parts of the world, but you should be able to use both documents to discuss a common historical theme that ties them together. Think of this as three sections: one paragraph or section about the first document, one paragraph or section about the second document, and a third section with your analysis tying the two documents together to explain a major historical development.
Identify each of the documents (type of document, author, time period, location)
Describe what each document says. Discuss the author’s perspective and intention as well as the message to an intended audience. Make sure to cover the main points in the document and provide text evidence in the form of short quotes from the document to back up your points.
Analyze: draw a connection between the two documents to discuss how they provide evidence for a major development or theme in global history. The major development should be one of the major themes we have discussed in class and it should be specific. For example “change” is not a theme—you need to talk about a specific type of change such as “industrialization.”
In your analysis use at least two specific details from each document in the form of quotes from a written document or references to particular aspects of an image. These details need to support your overall argument about the how the meaning of the document explains something about a major theme. In your analysis you should also refer to at least two other thoughtfully-chosen facts from the study sheets, related to the theme you are discussing to strengthen your argument.
Conclude: Provide a concluding statement that presents your argument about how the two documents have provided evidence for an important aspect of a major historical theme or development.
Documents you may use—found on study sheets or in the textbook (also discussed in lectures and on Zoom):
- US Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882
- Wilfred Owen, “Dulce et Decorum Est” (1917)
- Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points (1918)
- Benito Mussolini, What is Fascism? (1932)
- Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf, (1925)
- The Truman Doctrine, (1947)
- M.N. Roy, The Awakening of the East, (1920), BZ&S p.590
- Marcus Garvey, “Africa for Africans,” Speech delivered at Liberty Hall NYC during Second International Convention of Negroes August 1921, BZ&S, p.606
- Martin Luther King Jr. Letter from Birmingham Jail (1963) on lecture part 3 for Nov. 19