In what ways did the social structures of classical era societies change from those of the First Civilizations?

directions

Pick one of the questions below and respond in a well-developed essay. A satisfactory answer will require a multi-paragraph essay, somewhere in the neighborhood of 750-1000 words, although this is a guideline, not a prescription. It is possible to write an “A” essay that is shorter than 750 words, and there is much to be said for brevity; that being said, you will need to create and develop an argument answering a fairly involved question, which is probably going to be hard to do effectively in much less than 750 words. Please don’t write too much more than 1200 words–strive for concision, and understand that I am not expecting you to write a giant research paper.
One very effective format involves beginning with an introductory paragraph laying out your thesis–the gist of your argument. Subsequent paragraphs should provide evidence supporting your interpretation. A final paragraph should summarize the evidence and reiterate the argument.

There is no single “right” answer–you can make a variety of arguments on any of these questions. The key to a good grade is composing a clearly written, well-conceived argument, and supporting it with compelling historical evidence [properly cited using MLA or Chicago format (see the syllabus) with page numbers or FULL URLs–and no quoting Wikipedia, please, as you have several more focused, topical, higher quality sources in your textbooks].

questions: (pick ONE of the following topics for your essay)

-Could Zoroastrianism have become a world religion? Why or why not?

-Compare and contrast Greek rationalism with the Chinese philosophies developed during the Warring States period.

-In what ways did the religions and philosophies of the classical period support the social structures of classical societies? In what ways did they tend to undermine or challenge those social systems?

– In what ways did the social structures of classical era societies change from those of the First Civilizations?
In what ways were the contrasting political cultures of China and India reflected in their social hierarchies?

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