History Assignment: World Civilizations

Essay Prompt for Unit Four

Instead of writing an essay for both Unit Three and Unit Four, you may choose whether to write an essay for Unit Three or Unit Four. You will still need to write one long essay [four pages] for the course, but I have reduced the total number of essays by one. Essay prompts and due dates will be announced over the coming weeks. You will still have the opportunity to rewrite essays for higher grades. If you chose to write the essay for Unit Four.

Religions are often products of their times. They are reflection of, and reactions against, the societies in which they arose. Moreover, religions often evolve as they spread across time and space. They adapt and adjust to new societies, and they evolve in response to changing circumstances. In this essay, you must address the following questions:

Short Essay [Two Full-Pages]: Explain how eitherChristianity or Islam was a reflection of the society in which it evolved. How did it reflect prevailing social norms and values? Conversely, how was it a reaction against that society? You do not need to write about both religions for this prompt; simply select one and answer the questions outlined above. In the case of Christianity, this will mean comparing and contrasting the teachings of the early Christian Church with the values of Roman society. It will, moreover, mean discussing why Roman authorities viewed Christianity as a threat and why Roman officials persecuted early Christians. To do this, you will need to use background information from Hansen and Curtis and at least three of the following documents from Envisioning World Civilizations [7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4, and 7.5]. If you do this for Islam, you will need to draw on background information from Hansen and Curtis and at least three of the following documents [9.2, 9.3, 9.4, and 9.5]. If you chose to write on Islam, you will also need to discuss how early Muslims dealt with Jews and Christians who lived in their territories.

Long Essay [Four Full-Pages]: For the long essay, you must answer both of the questions listed above [i.e., answer the questions dealing with early Christianity and Islam], and then write a paragraph comparing and contrasting how both religions accepted and rejected some of the prevailing attitudes of the societies in which they emerged.