Assignment
Length: 1000 words.
Section I: Answer the question below (750-1000 words, 50% of your grade).
Jerry Brotton says in his introduction to A History of the World in Twelve Maps that "mapmakers do not just reproduce the world, they construct it." (p. 7). After reading the material from Brotton carefully, choose the Kangnido map from 1402 or the Waldseemüller World Map from 1507 and use it as evidence to discuss Brotton's assertion. Does the map you have chosen support Brotton's point? Why or why not? What does studying this map tell you about what types of texts and/or artifacts historians use as evidence to construct their interpretations? What does it tell you about how modern conceptions regarding the purpose and meaning of maps have changed compared to those of earlier societies? Why are images such as the map you have chosen useful as historical evidence? How can historians use them to understand the world view of the society that created it? What do these (and all maps) suggest about the ways in which maps, like other sorts of primary sources, are subjective rather than wholly objective texts/artifacts?
Section II: Answer one of the questions below (750-1000 words, 50% of your grade).
1. Define a "universal religion" and using as examples at least two DIFFERENT religions, discuss how universal religions brought worlds together and/or pushed them apart. How did religions create new cultural boundaries and rivalries in Afro-Eurasia? Explain the nature of the relationship between empires and universal religions during the period 300-600 CE.
2. Discuss the development of European Christendom from 600 to 1300 CE. What political and social divisions arose within Christendom? Why? How did developments such as manorialism, universities, and the Crusades (define each) contribute to Europe's identity as a fragmented yet distinctive cultural sphere? Use evidence and examples from your readings and other class materials to support your answer.
Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements:
1. The answer should be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides.
2. The response also includes a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student's name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
3. Also include a reference page. The Citations and references should follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length.