WESTERN CIVILIZATION

Instructions: The exam consists of three essay questions. Your task is to select one of the three questions and write an essay of about 700 words, or three pages, in response.
A few comments about how to organize these short essays should be helpful. Your essays should have a brief introduction, middle, and a brief conclusion. The first paragraph should clearly state what you intend to argue, the most important points you plan to develop, and the relationship between the points, in other words the significance of your argument. The middle of the essay should develop the argument described in the introduction. An argument is supported by evidence and differs in many ways from simple statements of opinion and speculation. Be sure to support your points wherever possible by specific references to the online primary sources on the Norton website we have been using and the documents in Perspectives from the Past. The textbook also contains a number of primary sources that may be useful, however, a mere summary of the arguments advanced in the textbook is not an acceptable approach. Again, arguments must be supported by the primary documents. Make sure to specify the documents you are using. The conclusion then restates the important points and stresses their significance. Outline your answers before you begin to write to make sure your argument is consistent and clear. An outline also allows you to think about what documents you might use to support your argument and, importantly in such a short essay, what to leave out due to reasons of space. Once you have finished, reread your paper for grammar, sense, and argument. All papers must be typed and submitted as attachments in the Exam dropbox. Exams are due Feb.23rd at 11:55pm.

1. In what way did the Reformation and Religious Wars influence views of politics in Europe? How did religious controversies affect the traditional views of monarchy and the duties of subjects to their princes, for instance? Do you think kings were correct in their assessment of religious differences among their subjects as a threat to their rule? Be sure to use the documents from England and France in the late sixteenth century to support your points.
2. After the crises of the religious wars, it is often claimed there was a ‘search for order’ in the seventeenth century. One response to this crisis was the development of the theory and practice of Absolutism. Based upon the documents you have read give an account of the meaning of this term and the ways which rulers and theorists justified Absolute rule. How did seventeenth century political theorists challenge the basis of this notion of the relation between a prince and his subjects?
3. Scientists such as Galileo and Copernicus are credited with providing Europeans with new ways of viewing their place in the universe. Their innovations relied on both the questioning of traditional authorities and the application of new scientific methods to old problems. However, their ideas were not necessarily in opposition to religion. Discuss the various aspects of this view of the Scientific Revolution using the documents to support your position.
Website: http://www.wwnorton.com/college/history/western-civilization17-brief/welcome.aspx