Today we will continue to study the rise of Europe. We will also be working on the skills of reading comprehension and analyzing and discussing secondary and primary source texts.
Question of the Day
What led to the rise of Europe after the Middle Ages?
Focus Questions
How did the lack of a unified political system in Europe lead to political pluralism there?
How did geography lead to the development of free, competitive, creative, and interdependent economies in Europe?
How did these conditions create an environment where invention and innovation could thrive?
The vocabulary below is related to the work you are doing today and would be worth using in your paragraph. Next class you will have write an assessment in which you have to identify three of these that I will choose. Here is an example of an ID:
Alps: The Alps are a mountain range in southern Europe (France, Italy, Austria, and Switzerland). They were significant to European society between 1300 and 1750 because they were one of the physical landforms that made it difficult for Europe to be politically centralized under one government. Europe’s decentralization was a key to its economic development.
Historical Connection: Physical geography is important to the development of civilizations. Just as the Alps influenced the development of Europe, we have studied that the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers had an impact on the development of settlements and life in Mesopotamia.
Western Europe
Alps
Pyrenees
English Channel
Baltic Sea
Political pluralism
Economic pluralism
Capitalism
Middle class
Huguenots
Louis XIV
Gunpowder
Renaissance
Printing press
Reformation
Fortresses
Atlantic Ocean
Colonial empires
Industrial Revolution
Read Chapter 4 of The Wealth and Poverty of Nations on inventions (on Blackboard). Click here for questions to guide your reading.
1: Scored discussion on the reading. You had two options for this reading. You should use what you learn here to improve the quality of your paragraph.
Option #1: You may read the entire chapter (15 pages) and explain on a notecard at the beginning of next class why Landes believes Europe became wealthy.
Option #2: You may choose just one of the technologies discussed in the chapter and explain on a notecard at the beginning of next class why Landes believes that technology helped Europe become more wealthy.. The technologies to choose from are:
The water wheel (2 paragraphs)
Eyeglasses (9 paragraphs)
The mechanical clock (12 paragraphs)
Printing (6 paragraphs)
Gunpowder (3 paragraphs)
2: Analyze one or more primary source documents. You should use these to improve the quality of your paragraph.
Identifications Quiz: You will have to provide an ID for three of the terms in the vocabulary list above at the beginning of class. In the ID you should explain the significance of the term given the time, place, and culture that we are studying now (Rise of Europe).
Final Draft (Paragraph): You will use your notes, the Landes reading, the documents and the first paragraph that you wrote to write a final draft in response to this question: What led to the rise of Europe after the Middle Ages?
Readings
If you want to learn more about this topic and be able to write about it and participate more effectively in discussions, complete this reading ("The Invention of the Printing Press and its Effects"), this one ("The Economic Recovery of Europe"), and this one ("The Birth of Banking").
This article discusses the role of free markets, capitalism, and the growth of the middle class in Venice in the 1300's. It also makes a connection to modern America.
Videos: Try these Crash Course videos too.
Debate: David Landes defends the thesis of Wealth and Poverty of Nations.