World History since 1500: The Payne Book Blog

Answer the following prompt. U se at least six specific pieces of information total and at least three specific pieces of information no one has yet used in their blog posts, ONLY from pages 103-153 of Persepolis , with a page citation for each; also, use at least 300 words in your answer.  1) The Iran-Iraq War lasted from 1980 to 1988, leaving over a million dead. During this time, there was also an internal war in Iran against enemies of the Islamic Republic. How did each of these "wars" affect Satrapi and her relationships with friends and family? Which one do you think affected her more, and why?  

Answer the following prompt. U se at least six specific pieces of information total and at least three specific pieces of information no one has yet used in their blog posts, ONLY from pages 54-102 of Persepolis , with a page citation for each; also, use at least 300 words in your answer.  1) How has the revolution's turn to the Islamic Republic changed the life of Satrapi (the author)?  How does the war with Iraq change her life? How did these violent changes alter ordinary life for others Iranians as well?

Persepolis is an autobiography by Marjane Satrapi told in the form of a graphic novel. While some in the United States associate cartoons with infantile humor, don't let this fool you: Satrapi uses cartoons to tell a story of a child living in a time of revolution. The story juxtaposes the ordinary struggles of a child trying to learn her role in the world while tremendous violence and social change rush around her. Answer the following prompt. U se at least six specific pieces of information total and at least three specific pieces of information no one has yet used in their blog posts, ONLY from the Introduction of page 53 of Persepolis , with a page citation for each; also, use at least 300 words in your answer.  1) How do Satrapi's emerging religious and political beliefs agree with and differ from her family, and why? What are some of her heroes growing up, and how are they similar to and different from your heroes growing up? How do cultural contexts and distinct

Answer the following prompt. U se at least three specific pieces of information no one has yet used in their blog posts and at least six specific pieces of information total, ONLY from Part 3 of The Underdogs , with a page citation for each; also, use at least 300 words in your answer.  1) How have the attitudes of soldiers and civilians altered since the beginning of the novel? What do these changed attitudes tell us about how sustained warfare changes people? And, having seen the end of this story, what do you think is the author's attitude towards the "underdogs" who fought in the Mexican Revolution? In short, why do you think the author--who fought in the Revolution--wrote this book?

Choose one of the following prompts to answer. U se at least three specific pieces of information no one has yet used in their blog posts and at least six specific pieces of information total, ONLY from Part 2 of The Underdogs , with a page citation for each; also, use at least 300 words in your answer.  1) Discuss three actions or violence, cruelty, or greed that you found particularly memorable to you in Part 2 . For each act, discuss who did it, to whom did they do it, why do you think they did it, and how others reacted to it. What do these stories tell us about how having power other others without fear of consequences changes people, especially those who had been oppressed their whole lives? OR 2) How do War Paint and Camila illustrate for us both the opportunities and limitations of women in the Mexican Revolution? OR  3) Who do you think the three most interesting (not necessarily likeable) characters in this chapter are, and why? How does each character tell us

Of all our books in this class, The Underdogs deals most with death, chaos, and disillusionment in the face of revolution. The author , Mariano Azuela, himself participated in the Revolution and wrote this book in 1915, in the very middle of the fighting. While the characters are mostly fictional, Azuela based them off of people he knew and fought alongside--or against.   The Mexican Revolution started in 1910-1911 with the overthrow of the tyrant Porfirio Días by the popular Francisco I. Madero . By 1913, however, Madero himself was deposed and murdered in a coup by one of his generals, Victoriano Huerta . By 1914, Huerta was also defeated by another popular uprising, but these revolutionaries were not united. So, fighting would continue for 6 more years, mainly under four factions: Pancho Villa (a bandit from the north), Venustiano Carranza (a politician from the north), Álvaro Obregón (one of Carranza's generals who turned on him), and Emiliano Zapata (a peasant from th

Choose one of the following prompts to answer. U se at least three specific pieces of information no one has yet used in their blog posts and at least six specific pieces of information total, from Part 3 (chapters 20 to 24 ), with a page citation for each; also, use at least 300 words in your answer. 1) How has the tribe of Umuofia fallen apart? What do you think are the three main factors contributing to this falling apart, and which is most important? OR 2) How does the shift of perspective from men like Okonkwo towards certain white men radically change the narration from the beginning of the book to the end? How does this demonstrate how the sources of information we draw from deeply influence what kind of history we tell?

Choose one of the following prompts to answer. U se at least three specific pieces of information no one has yet used in their blog posts and at least six specific pieces of information total, from Part 2 (chapters 14 to 19 ), with a page citation for each; also, use at least 300 words in your answer. 1) Kinship networks -- family ties -- are a key component of the story of West African cultures. How does this section of the book demonstrate the centrality of kinship networks for Okonkwo and those around him? When those family ties become strained, how do different characters respond? OR 2) How do interactions with missionaries emphasize the differences, not only between white and black cultures, but among different black African peoples? How does the author's perspective help us see Christian missions as a threat to most people in Okonkwo's culture and yet also attractive to some people in that culture?

The following question relating to the world told of in chapters 8-15. U se at least three specific pieces of information no one has yet used in their blog posts and at least six specific pieces of information total, with a page citation for each; also, use at least 300 words in your answer. 1) Discuss three rituals in Umuofia in chapters 8 to 15. How do they bring order to the village and establish roles for different kinds of people? Who benefits and who suffers from each ritual? Which ritual do you find most attractive, which one do you find least attractive, and why?

Using material from chapter 10 and the appendix, answer one of the following prompts, using at least three specific pieces of information no one has yet used in their blog posts and at least six specific pieces of information total, with a page citation for each. Also use at least 300 words in your answer. 1) The first several chapters were "letters" written by Father Rodrigues that gradually faded into the main narrative of the novel. Now, in chapter 10 and the appendix, there are two different kinds of sources used to advance the story. How do the changes in writing format throughout this part of the book reflect the difficulties of using historical documents to write history? Pretending for a moment that all the accounts in this section of the novel are real historical records, what do you think happened to the protagonist, Father Rodrigues, and what evidence do you use to support that claim? OR 2) Assess to what extent Kichijiro, Ferriera, and Rodrigue

Using material from pages 154 to 178, answer the following prompt, using at least three specific pieces of information no one has yet used in their blog posts and at least six specific pieces of information total, with a page citation for each. Also use at least 300 words in your answer. Why does Rodrigues trample the fumie, and how does that change his faith? What are the similarities and differences between Rodrigues and Kichijiro, and what does it tell us about how cultural differences affect how foreign ideas and beliefs are received?

The themes of silence, suffering, and the difficulty of Christianity taking root in Japan saturate Silence , especially pages 101 to 153. Answer one of the following questions, including at least three characters from the story, at least three specific pieces of information no one has yet used in their blog posts, and at least six specific pieces of information total, with a page citation for each. 1) What is the meaning of the silence and of Christians' suffering, according to the Portuguese priests, Japanese converts, and Japanese authorities? How does this help reveal their different understandings of what Christianity is? OR    2) Inoue claims that Christianity cannot take root in Japan. According to the novel, to what extent do you think European Christianity is translatable to Japanese culture?

Between pages 47 and 100, what are at least three similarities between the the story of the narrator/protagonist (Father Sebastian Rodrigues) and the Passion of Jesus? What are at least three differences between the two, and what do these differences say about the cultural gap between the Portuguese priest and his mission field of Japan? Answer each part of the prompt, using at least three specific pieces of information no one has yet used in their blog posts, and at least six specific pieces of information total, with a page citation for each.

Silence goes against two commonly accepted narratives: the constant expansion of Christianity and Western influence on the one hand, and that martyrdom always results in the multiplication and eventual triumph of Christianity in a given place. In Silence , one place where neither of these narratives comes true is Japan in the early 17th century. While the Translator's Preface summarizes the historical record, the Prologue moves us into the realm of fiction and begins Endo's novel. For this blog post, choose either prompt 1) or 2) and answer it thoroughly, using at least three specific pieces of information no one has yet used in their blog posts: 1) Briefly summarize the factors that, according to the text, led Christianity to first take root and then be suppressed in Japan. What parts of that story surprise you? Why? (Give at least six specific pieces of information with a page citation for each.) OR 2) Pick out two characters from the Prologue to Chapter 3. How does ea

Responses can be informal (1st person is ok), are graded pass/fail, gauge your reading, and facilitate in-class book discussions. In order to pass, e ach response must fully answer the requirements of the original post (OP), be at least 300 words long, use complete sentences, clearly identify the student author from this course, include at least three pieces of specific information that no one has mentioned before in the blog, and cite specific information from the book using page number or numbers in parentheses, such as (30) or (31-33).    Responses are due by midnight (12 am) on the day the blog response is assigne d in V. COURSE SCHEDULE . No late entries will receive a passing grade. Passing all blog responses earns a 1% course grade bonus.    If you are uncertain how to use this blog, consult a classmate for assistance.