Week  4 :   Sep 11 - 17 Thematic Issue:  Islam & the West:  Conflict, Conversion or Co - Existence? Related Thematic Issue(s):  Globalization; Racism & Racial Inequality Topic:  Debating ‘The Rise of the West’  & ‘Decline of the East’  in World  History Required readings :  1 - John O .  Voll, “ Beyond Golden Age and Decline  - The Legacy of Muslim Societies in Global Modernity,  1300 - 1900 ,” in  The Sage Handbook of Islamic Studies , ed. Akbar Ahmed and Tamara Sonn (London: Sage,  2010). 2 - Jack Goody, Renaissances: The One or the Many? ( New York: Cambridge University Press. 2010 ),  reviewed by Jack A. Goldstone,  American Historical Review , June 2011, pp. 765 - 766. 3 - Eric Vanhaute, “(Ch 7) A Divided World:  The West and  The Rest ,” in  World History: An  Introduction (Routledge, 2013), pp. 101 - 110. (Note: You only need to read up  until the section entitled “Growth of an  unequal global trade system” on p. 110. You do not need to read that section or anything after it.) Assignments Due: Tue ,  Sep 12 , by mid night, on  Blackboard : Library Research Assignment (LRA): Pt  2 Thurs ,  Sep 28 ,  before midnight,  on Blackboard :  WK 4, WK 5 & WK 6 Weekly Reading Essays (WREs) (All three essays due together in ONE WORD or PDF document uploaded  on Blackboard ) Based  only on the readings above,  write,  in your own words , a 400 - 450 word fact - based essay  explaining the topic of  “ Debating ‘The Rise of the West’ & ‘Decline of the East’ in World History .”  Your essay  should: (1)  C ompare and contrast Western (Eurocentric) versus  Muslim and other  non - Eurocentric interpretations of  ‘the rise of the West’ and the ‘decline of the Islamic Golden Age’ H IST 105, Roots of Contemporary Issues - RCI  (Secs 19, 28, 33) ,  Fall - 2017, WSU, RC Weller,  1 st ed.  (201 7 - 0 8 - 1 8 ) Page  8 (Voll and Goldstone on Goody) , (2) explain  briefly the concept of ‘the rise of the West’ and the  alleged ‘Great Divergence’ and how it is measured (Vanhuate) , and  ( 3 ) explain the three different  types  of explanation  for  ‘the  rise  of  the West’ and the alleged  ‘Great  Divergence’  which  is  connected to it (Vanhuate) . Your essay must include  at least ten (or more)  total references to the reading s  – a minimum  of  two  from  Voll , two from  Goldstone’s review of Goody ,  four  from  Vanhaute , and the other two  from whichever of the above listed sources you wish to use.  Be sure to follow both these specific  guidelines as well as the general guidelines for a ll essays contained in the ‘Weekly Reading Essay  (WRE) Guidelines’. Optional Activities : Tue ,  Sep 12 ,  7pm, CUB Senior Ballroom: RCI  Annual  Interdisciplinary Lecture 2017 - 18 :  Katie Cooper,  “Plate Tectonics: how the Earth’s interior impacts elections, cell phones, global cl.

1. Week
4
:
Sep 11
-
17
Thematic Issue:
Islam & the West:
Conflict, Conversion or Co
-
Existence?
Related Thematic Issue(s):
Globalization; Racism & Racial Inequality
Topic:
Debating ‘The Rise of the West’
& ‘Decline of the East’
in World
History

2. Required readings
:
1
-
John O
.
Voll, “
Beyond Golden Age and Decline
-
The Legacy of Muslim Societies in Global Modernity,
1300
-
1900
,” in
The Sage Handbook of Islamic Studies
, ed. Akbar Ahmed and Tamara Sonn (London: Sage,
2010).
2

3. -
Jack Goody,
Renaissances: The One or the Many?
(
New
York: Cambridge University Press. 2010
),
reviewed by Jack A. Goldstone,
American Historical Review
, June 2011, pp. 765
-
766.
3
-
Eric Vanhaute, “(Ch 7) A Divided World:
The West
and
The Rest

4. ,”
in
World History: An
Introduction
(Routledge, 2013), pp. 101
-
110. (Note: You only need to read up
until
the section entitled “Growth of an
unequal global trade system” on p. 110. You do not need to read
that section or anything after it.)
Assignments Due:
Tue
,
Sep 12
, by mid
night, on
Blackboard

5. : Library Research Assignment (LRA): Pt
2
Thurs
,
Sep 28
,
before
midnight,
on Blackboard
:
WK 4, WK 5 & WK 6 Weekly Reading Essays (WREs)
(All three essays due together in ONE WORD or PDF document
uploaded
on Blackboard
)
Based
only
on the readings above,
write,

6. in your own words
, a 400
-
450 word
fact
-
based
essay
explaining the topic of
“
Debating ‘The Rise of the West’ & ‘Decline of the East’ in
World History
.”
Your essay
should: (1)
C
ompare and contrast
Western (Eurocentric) versus

7. Muslim
and other
non
-
Eurocentric
interpretations of
‘the rise of the West’ and the ‘decline of the Islamic Golden
Age’
H
IST
105, Roots of Contemporary Issues
-
RCI
(Secs 19, 28, 33)
,
Fall
-
2017, WSU, RC Weller,
1

8. st
ed.
(201
7
-
0
8
-
1
8
)
Page
8
(Voll and Goldstone on Goody)
, (2) explain
briefly
the concept of ‘the rise of the West’ and the
alleged ‘Great Divergence’ and how it is

9. measured
(Vanhuate)
, and
(
3
) explain the three different
types of explanation for ‘the rise of the West’ and the
alleged ‘Great Divergence’ which is
connected to it
(Vanhuate)
.
Your essay must include
at least
ten (or more)
total references to the reading
s
–
a minimum

10. of
two
from
Voll
, two from
Goldstone’s review of Goody
,
four
from
Vanhaute
, and the other two
from whichever of the above listed sources you wish to use.
Be sure to follow both these specific
guidelines as well as the general guidelines for a
ll essays contained in the ‘Weekly Reading Essay
(WRE) Guidelines’.
Optional Activities
:

11. Tue
,
Sep 12
,
7pm, CUB Senior Ballroom:
RCI
Annual
Interdisciplinary Lecture
2017
-
18
:
Katie Cooper,
“Plate Tectonics: how the Earth’s interior impacts elections,
cell
phones, global climate, and you”
Week
5
:

12. Sep 18
-
24
Thematic Issue:
Islam & the West: C
onflict, Conversion or Co
-
Existence?
Related Thematic Issue(s):
Globaliz
a
tion; Racism & Racial Inequality
Topic:
Islam & the West in World History: Western vs.
Muslim Views
Required Readings:
1
-

13. Tamim Ansary, “Introduction” [Western vs. Muslim Views of
World History], in
Destiny Disrupted: A
History of the World through Islamic Eyes
(New York: Public Affairs, 2009), xiii
-
xxii.
Assignments Due:
Tue
,
Sep 19
, by midnight, on
Blackboard
:
Personal Life History Reflection Paper (PLHRP)
Thurs
,
Sep 28

14. ,
before
midnight,
on Blackboard
:
WK 4, WK 5 & WK 6 Weekly Reading Essays (WREs)
(All three essays due together in ONE WORD or PDF document
uploaded
on Blackboard
)
Based
only
on the reading above,
write,
in your own words
, a 400
-
450 word
fact

15. -
based
essay
explaining the topic of
“
Islam & the West in World History: Western vs. Muslim
Views
.” Your
essay should: (1)
D
iscuss the debates over the inclusion/exclusion of Islam
from world history
textbooks in the U.S. (beginning section of Ansary) and (2)
compare and contrast Western versus
Muslim interpretations of world history (later section of
Ansary).
Your essay must i
nclude
at least
eight (or more)

16. total references to the reading.
Be sure to
follow both these specific guidelines as well as the general
guidelines for all essays contained in the
‘Weekly Reading Essay (WRE) Guidelines’