Primary sources from Merry E. Wiesner-Hanks, Patricia Buckly Ebrey, Roger B. Beck, Jerry Davila, Clare Haru Crowston, John P. McKay, editors. A History of World Societies: Volume 1: to 1600. Eleventh Edition. Boston, New York: Bedford/St. Martin’s Macmillan Learning, 2018, ISBN-13: 9781319059316.
Merry E. Wiesner-Hanks, Patricia Buckley Ebrey, Roger B. Beck, Jerry Dávila, Clare Haru Crowston, John P. McKay, editors. Sources of World Societies: Volume 1: to 1600. Twelfth Edition. Boston, New York: Bedford/St. Martins Macmillan Learning, 2018. ISBN-13: 978-1319297435
Merry E. Wiesner-Hanks, Patricia Buckley Ebrey, Roger B. Beck, Jerry Dávila, Clare Haru Crowston, John P. McKay, editors. Sources of World Societies: Volume 1: to 1600. Twelfth Edition. Boston, New York: Bedford/St. Martins Macmillan Learning, 2018. ISBN-13: 978-1319297435
OPTION #1: RELIGIOUS AND CULTURAL VIEWS OF GENDER
From the list above, in a 6-8 page essay, please use at least 3 of the Roman World (WH) and 3 of the Islamic World (IW) primary sources to assess comparatively how late antique Roman and Arabian religious and cultural traditions may have informed gender identity in the Early Medieval Period.
OPTION #2: POLITICAL AND SOCIAL VIEWS OF GENDER
From the list above, in a 6-8 page essay, please use at least 3 of the Roman World (WH) and 3 of the Islamic World (IW) primary sources to assess comparatively how late antique Roman and Arabian political and social traditions may have informed gender identity in the Early Medieval Period.
For both options, you may want to frame your approach by engaging the following prompts:
What did it mean to be a man or woman in the late antique and early medieval era?
Do the sources indicate any evidence of codes of conduct or gender expectations that a man or woman should follow in Christian and Islamic societies?
What was the impact of any classical traditions on gender identity?
How was being a man or woman different (or similar) between Christian and Islamic civilizations?
Do you see anything formative for our own times gender relations as originating in the early medieval period depicted in these readings?
*Dont forget (1) to use the Wiesner-Hanks, et al main textbook, A History of World Societies, Vol 1: To 1600 to frame your historical discussions, and (2) to address so what? implications of your analyses (i.e., relevancies that these readings and historical people, events, and phenomena may have for you in our 21st Century world!)
