Shifting Global Power: The Rise of the West

Historians Do Not Agree.

Essential Question: What led to the rise of the West?

As mentioned in the introduction to this theme, the theme of shifting power, the West, particularly the British Empire, came to dominate most of the world–countries in western Europe eclipsed China, India, Africa and Latin America in military, technological and economic power. Historians have tried to figure out why or how European power surged beginning in the 1500s. There are many debates and disagreements as to the major causes of this shift in power. We will look at some of the major theories and/or schools of thought. Ultimately, you will need to synthesize the three schools of thought mentioned below. You will need to fit them together like pieces of a puzzle, fit them into one essay for the test.

Here is a dramatic example of this new-found western power, the British during the Opium Wars:

How did this dramatic shift occur?

---

We will look at competing theories re: the Rise of the West.

---

R I I S S

1. The West Controlled Important Resources (handout, Robert Marks The Origins of the Modern World and video on the Columbian Exchange, click here)
2. Ideas/Ideology made the West powerful/ dynamic (handouts from Fernando Armesto, Pathfinders and Peter Watson, Ideas–we read this one from Watson once already, during the unit on Stereotypes and Islam–the shift to quantification argument.)
   
3. Social/Structural changes allow for innovation and superior technology and military techniques (handout from Fareed Zakaria, The Post-American World)

These are some of the major types of arguments re: the rise of the West.

THERE ARE THREE MAJOR SCHOOLS OF THOUGHT you need to know for the test!!!

RIISS

---

Test

Part I. True/false (30 pts)

Part II. Essay (70 pts)

Essay: Explain the RANGE of factors that led to the rise of the West up to 1850.

Rise of the West Test Rubric. Also, this is an essay one student wrote on the test, I had him type it up for the blog (click here).

 

YOU ARE ALLOWED TO BRING ONE NOTE-CARD OR INDEX CARD WITH AN OUTLINE OR LIST OF KEY POINTS ETC. HAND THE NOTE-CARD IN AFTER THE TEST PLEASE.

 

Click here to go back to the main page of World Civ II.