For your initial post, choose one of the prompts below. Note that each initial post must also quote and discuss a specific passage (this means to literally copy and paste, word for word, using quotation marks) from the primary source (firsthand account from history) linked or attached to your prompt. Be sure to indicate the sources you are using (textbook, primary source, lecture), at the point of use, in some fashion. There are no points awarded for use of outside sources. There will be point deductions for the use of such lower-tier sources as encyclopedias, blogs, or dictionaries. The follow up query from your instructor, and your own peer posts, may be about any aspect of the readings or lecture materials.
1. Compare the primary source document Crown Prince Wilhelm on the Prospect of War to the Causes of WWI web site article assigned in this week’s readings. Do these two sources show us a unified picture of the causes of WWI? The primary source excerpt gives us a clear picture of Germany’s understanding of the world and its place in it in 1913 just before the outbreak of WWI. Based on the evidence of this primary source excerpt, do you think that Germany was primarily responsible for the war or do you think that there were several factors that led to the war? Please quote and discuss at least one passage from Prince Wilhelm’s book (the primary source for this prompt) in your post. Please be sure to incorporate also the Causes of WWI article. Clearly state your sources at the point of use.
2. Analyze the primary source document Jules Ferry (1832-1893): On French Colonial Expansion to explain the European attitude toward colonization. Why does the French prime minster think Europeans (and especially the French) should be colonizing other countries? Please quote and discuss at least one specific passage from the speech. After discussing the excerpt, explain the role of colonialism and the colonies in WWI. How did the race for colonies help feed the push for war? How were the resources and territories of the colonies used during the conflict and what was the impact on them of the war? Please use the course readings “India and the Western Front,” “Slavery and the ‘Scramble for Africa’,” “African Voices of the Global Past,” or the lecture video, “African Soldiers in the First World War” to answer the second half of the prompt. Clearly state your sources at the point of use.
3. Using the primary source document selection from the Manifesto of the Communist Party explain Marx’s ideas about class and industry. According to this document, what are the factors that have shaped world history? In your answer, please quote and discuss at least one passage from the Manifesto. After discussing the excerpt, incorporate the impact and development of Marxist ideals in the Russian Revolution of 1917 using the assigned readings in Ziegler. It has been said that Marxist thought provided the Russian people a way to articulate and frame their demands thereby enabling them to effectively solidify their movement for reform. Do you agree with this? Why or why not? Clearly state your sources at the point of use
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