MBW Courses

[HIST 21] Essay #1 Assignment

Mark Wilson — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 10:25:53 +0000

Here is the assignment for Essay #1 (on Gilgamesh).

The full text is also below, if you can’t open the PDF.

DUE: TUESDAY, MARCH 9
May be handed in in class or submitted by email in a DOC or RTF format. Note: Your email submission only “counts” if you receive a reply back from me saying I got it. As stated in the syllabus, any late submissions are marked down 10 points per class meeting.
Please format your essay as follows. Your essay should

Be typed, double-spaced, in 12 pt. Times or Arial, with one-inch margins on all sides. Please spellcheck and, if you’re not sure about your writing, have a friend read it. I will not mark down for grammar, but clarity is very important.
Have a cover page with the title, your name, my name, and the date, and have page numbers on each page after the cover page.
Run 2½–3 full pages, not including the cover page.
Have all direct quotations, indirect quotations, and ideas from other sources footnoted according to a standard citation style. This is extremely important and failure to do this will seriously affect your grade. In this case your source will be the epic itself. You may — but are not required to — use secondary sources that discuss this story as additional resources if you want to. Whether you use additional sources will have no effect on your grade, since I am interested in your interpretations and how well you support them with evidence.

ASSIGNMENT
Choose one of the following topics:
1. Choose any of the mortal characters from Gilgamesh and discuss his or her relationship with the gods. Give three examples and discuss what these episodes reveal about the character and about the society in which he or she lives. Consider physical, emotional, economic, religious, or any other factors that these incidents speak to.
2. Choose any of the female characters from Gilgamesh and discuss her relationship with the other charac5ters and their society. Give three examples and examine what these episodes reveal about the character and her femininity as conceived by the creators of the epic. Consider physical, emotional, economic, religious, or any other factors that these incidents speak to.

Your conclusion should be the last one-third or so of your essay and relate to the following: How, specifically, does this character reflect what the creators of the story are trying to say about their society?
Remember to think of the epic as a kind of primary source, in which the creators are giving evidence of idea they want to communicate. What their main points in this document, and how is your character being used to communicate them?
Remember that, as always, I am looking for your opinion and how well you support it with evidence; this essay is less about “right answers” than it is about well-supported ideas. Feel free to praise or complain about the author’s style, techniques, or attitude, as long as you cover the points of the assignment described above.

Sample Proposal

Mark Wilson — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 10:19:14 +0000

Here is the sample proposal.
Sample Proposal (PDF)

[HIST 21] Syllabus and Other Handouts

Mark Wilson — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 18:23:31 +0000

Here are the main handouts for HIST 21.

HIST 21 Syllabus	PDF	HTM
HIST 21 Schedule	PDF	HTM
Maps	PDF	HTM
Examining Primary Sources	PDF	HTM
. Position Paper Handouts
— HIST 21 Position Paper Requirements	PDF	HTM
— Writing a Position Paper	PDF	HTM
— Sample Proposal	PDF	HTM
— Research Approaches and Resources	PDF	HTM

[CORE 2.2] Syllabus and Other Handouts

Mark Wilson — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 18:17:27 +0000

Here are the main handouts for Core 2.2.

Core 2.2 Syllabus	PDF	HTM
Core 2.2 Schedule	PDF	HTM
Examining Primary Sources	PDF	HTM
. Position Paper Handouts
— Core 2.2 Position Paper Requirements	PDF	HTM
— Writing a Position Paper	PDF	HTM
— Sample Proposal	PDF	HTM
— Research Approaches and Resources	PDF	HTM

[HIST 21] Books you’ll need

Mark Wilson — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 04:56:57 +0000

You’ll need four books for HIST 21: Two books that cover the history, and two very short works of fiction. For the fiction books, you can use either the version I recommend, or some other version. But you’ll need to get the stories in some form — the fiction books are required.

In choosing books for this course, I did make an effort to keep the overall cost down; the new versions aren’t very pricey, and used versions are available online (see the links at the bottom of the post).

(1) The Ancient History Book:
Robin W. Winks and Susan P. Mattern-Parkes
The Ancient Mediterranean World
Oxford, 2004, ISBN: 978-0-19-515563-1

(2) The Medieval History Book:
Morris Bishop
The Middle Ages
Mariner, 2001, ISBN: 978-0-618-05703-0

(3) Gilgamesh:
Andrew George, trans.
The Epic of Gilgamesh
Penguin, 1999
ISBN: 978-0-140-44919-8

Version notes: Penguin has more than one Gilgamesh. I recommend the Andrew George edition because he translated directly from the source. It also has a useful intro. If you get another edition, make sure it uses the Standard Version.
Although summaries of various sources of Gilgamesh exist online, there isn’t a trustworthy translation of the Standard Version on the web. Since the Penguin edition is only about $12, I suggest you use that.

(4) The Song of Roland:
Glyn Burgess, trans.
The Song of Roland
Penguin, 1990, ISBN: 978-0-140-44532-9

Version notes: This is a good edition, but most published versions of The Song of Roland will do.
There are numerous translations of The Song of Roland online, including at Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/391

Availability

All four books are available from Brooklyn College Bookstore, either on person or via their website: http://whywaitforbooks.com
All four are also available from Amazon and other online retailers—use the ISBNs to search. Also available from the publishers’ web sites. If you order online, make sure you do so enough in advance that you’ll receive the books in time for the assignments.
Amazon links:

[CORE 2.2] Books you’ll need

Mark Wilson — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 04:30:18 +0000

Two books are required for CORE 2.2: (1) The Textbook, and (2) The Reader.

Spielvogel (Latest edition)

(1) The Textbook:
Jackson J. Spielvogel
Western Civilization: A Brief History
Volume II, 5th Edition (or later—may say 7th Edition)
Wadsworth: Cengage: 2011
ISBN: 978-0-495-57149-0

PLEASE NOTE THE EDITION: I am using the latest edition of this book, which differs substantially in organization from earlier editions (4th Edition and before). Make sure the cover looks like the one pictured here. If you get an earlier edition, you will have difficulty following the assignments.
Available from Brooklyn College Bookstore, either in person or via their website: http://whywaitforbooks.com
Available for slightly less from Amazon and other online retailers, but make sure you get the right edition (see below). Use the ISBN above to search for this volume and edition
- Amazon link: Western Civilization: A Brief History, Volume II
- Abe Books multi-site search
- Barnes and Noble
You can rent the textbook online for the semester for about half price. For more info, go to http://cengage.com/wadsworth and search for this book by ISBN (9780495571490, without the hyphens)

The Reader

(2) The Reader:
Brooklyn College Dept. of History
The Shaping of the Modern World
4th Edition
Pearson Custom Publishing: 2007
ISBN: 0-536-48964-5

Available at the Brooklyn College Bookstore (in person)
Some are available used online.
- Amazon link: Shaping of the Modern World (Brooklyn College CC 2.2 Reader)
You can get an e-book version of this book at half price. To purchase an access code, go to http://www.pearsoncustom.com/ny/bc_history_smw/

[HIST 112] Final Exam Review

Mark Wilson — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 15:16:37 +0000

Here is the review sheet for the final exam. As before, this is designed not for you to be able to answer each question exhaustively and at length, but to guide you toward topics you recognize less and need to brush up on.

Final Exam Review – Hunter HIST 112 – Fall 2009

[HIST 112] Essay #2 Assignment

Mark Wilson — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 13:32:50 +0000

Here is the assignment, in PDF and in HTM (click on Continue Reading to see it).

Essay #2 – Things Fall Apart

Essay #2: Things Fall Apart

DUE: FRIDAY, DECEMBER 11

May be handed in in class or submitted by email in a DOC or RTF format. Note: Your email submission only “counts” if you receive a reply back from me saying I got it. As stated in the syllabus, any late submissions are marked down 10 points per class meeting.

Please format your essay as follows. Your essay should

Be typed, double-spaced, in 12 pt. Times or Arial, with one-inch margins on all sides. Please spellcheck and, if you’re not sure about your writing, have a friend read it. I will not mark down for grammar, but clarity is very important.
Have a cover page with the title, your name, my name, and the date, and have page numbers on each page after the cover page.
Run 2½–3 full pages, not including the cover page.
Have all direct quotations, indirect quotations, and ideas from other sources footnoted according to a standard citation style. This is extremely important and failure to do this will seriously affect your grade. In this case your source will be the novel itself; but you may use secondary sources that discuss this novel as additional resources if you want to. Whether you use additional sources will have no effect on your grade, since I am interested in your interpretations and how well you support them with evidence. (See the Citations section of the research project handout.)

ASSIGNMENT

Choose ONE of the following topics.

1. It has been argued that the conflict relating to the supernatural world drives Things Fall Apart. How does Achebe describe the beliefs and traditions of the Igbo differently from those the white man brings with him? Cite specific examples of how these beliefs are depicted and used by Achebe. How does his use of the supernatural reflect the author’s message about the contact between Europeans
and Africans?

2. Examine Okonkwo’s relationship with any other major character from the story. How does this relationship change over the course of the novel, and how does this change in the relationship reflect what’s happening to the Igbo people? Cite specific examples from different sections of the book. Also, does the relationship change because Okonkwo changes, and do his changes reflect what’s happening to Okonkwo’s people?

Remember that, as always, I am looking for your opinion and how well you support it with evidence; this essay is less about “right answers” than it is about well-supported ideas. Feel free to praise or complain about the author’s style, techniques, or attitude, as long as you cover the points of the assignment described above.

[HIST 112] Civil War Readings for 11/6

Mark Wilson — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 01:17:12 +0000

Hi folks,

Here are the readings for the American Civil War. These are the assigned readings for this topic, and so you are responsible for them.

Civil War Readings

[HIST 112] Updated Assignment Schedule

Mark Wilson — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 09:45:04 +0000

I’ve updated the assignment schedule to move forward the readings we did not discuss before the exam.

2009-3hc Schedule-Updated