Every question should be an essay which means introduction, 2paragrah and conclusion. 3pages
No the class name is History 2010-01
Development of Civilization to 1648
Spring 2022
1. Much of human history took place before the development of civilization, much less writing. This means historians are dependent upon other disciplines ( archeology, anthropology, DNA analysis) for our information about these earliest times. What they teach us is that humans were first hunter/gathers and then they became village dwellers who were farmers. Describe both of these two ways of life in terms of their extent and their character. In this context, where would you place Abraham who was a herder? ( Hint: coming up with a thesis for this one is hard. Perhaps it would work to say something like “ Before humans developed civilization they were either hunter/gathers or farmers who lived in villages. These ways of life can be found all over the globe.” This makes a claim so it is a thesis (which also means it could be mistaken) and it suggests how you organize your answer which makes it a good one.
2. The earliest civilization we studied was Sumer in what is today Iraq. The geography of the area played an important role in shaping civilizations there. In particular what feature of the geography did we stress and how did it shape the political and cultural, even religious history of this area? (Don’t forget taming of the rivers and wide open to attack.) Can you see that for this question the influence of geography on the emergence of the form of the civilization makes sense as your thesis?
3. The earliest civilization in Egypt is a bit younger than that of Mesopotamia but no less important. You have read several sources which suggest just how advanced that civilization was. Don’t forget to include them. Also, remember geography plays an important role in the shaping of the history of Egypt. Don’t forget taming the rivers and isolated from attack. It might even make a good thesis.
4. The Hittites were a powerful force in history for almost half a millennium. After their collapse, near the end of the Bronze Age, they disappear completely from history until the eighteenth century. Given that they were lost for so long, how do we know they were really a civilization worth writing about? ( This really 2 questions and therefore 2 tasks. First, prove that it qualifies by our definition of a civilization and second, what makes it worth writing about?
5. Describe Bronze Age Indian Civilization.
6. Tannahill has discussed clean and unclean food in two places, thus far, 56f and 103 f. Why people make certain foods “unclean”, that is unfit for human consumption, has little to do with whether or not we can safely eat them. Poison ivy or death cap mushrooms are not “unclean”. Some people eat dogs, we will not do so. In Ecuador, the national dish is guinea pig. Why we declare some things taboo and others acceptable is what I want you to discuss. What information on this subject does Tannahill provide? What explanations does he offer and which among them does he accept? What makes the most sense to you?