Assignment 2: Cultural Expression and Western Civilization

About this Assignment This assignment invites you to investigate how key events or turning points in premodern Europe, such as pandemics, intellectual revolutions, or religious transformations, shaped the arts, literature, and/or philosophy. By focusing on a particular event or moment in time, you'll gain insight into how societies made sense of their world. Course Learning Outcomes The following course learning outcomes are assessed in this assignment: Analyze how art, literature, and philosophy expressed cultural values and shaped intellectual traditions across premodern Europe. Draw connections across multiple places and time periods in premodern European history. Related Lessons Ancient Greek Art, Pottery and Sculpture Renaissance Humanism: Definition, Characteristics & Works Art in the Protestant Reformation: Albrecht Durer & Northern European Artists Prompt Premodern European art, literature, and philosophy often responded to times of crisis, turmoil, and transformation. This assignment gives you the opportunity to analyze a moment in history where cultural expression played a crucial role in reflecting, shaping, or challenging cultural norms and ideas. Completing Your Assignment Write a comparative analysis paper (1,000-1,200 words) that addresses the following: Select a significant event or moment from premodern European history (e.g., the Black Death, Renaissance humanism, or the Protestant Reformation) that is of personal interest or relevance to you. Provide a brief description (150-250 words) of the event or moment, including major causes and effects. Analyze how this event or moment influenced a specific work of art, piece of literature, or philosophical treatise from the same period (250-350 words). Compare and contrast this work of cultural expression to an earlier work to demonstrate the continuities and shifts in cultural ideas and values over time (250-350 words). Use close textual and/or visual analysis of your selected works (which serve as primary sources) as evidence to support your argument. Use at least 3 scholarly sources as evidence to support your analysis and argument. Include a short reflection (200-300 words) that discusses at least one way the cultural concerns expressed in one or both works echo a modern cultural concept or anxiety today. Formatting & Sources Please write your paper in the Chicago Manual of Style format. You may refer to the course material for supporting evidence, but you must also use at least 3 external sources and cite them using CMS format. Please include a mix of both primary and secondary sources, with at least one source from a scholarly publication. If you use any Study.com lessons as sources, please also cite them in CMS (including the lesson title and instructor's name). Primary sources are first-hand accounts such as maps, books, and works of art created or published at the time. Secondary sources come from peer-reviewed scholarly journals, such as American Historical Review. You may use sources like JSTOR, Google Scholar, and Wiley Online Library to find articles from these journals. Secondary sources may also come from reputable websites with .gov, .edu, or .org in the domain. (Wikipedia is not a reputable source, though the sources listed in Wikipedia articles may be acceptable.) If you're unsure about how to use CMS format to cite your sources, please see the following lessons: What Is the Chicago Citation Style? Chicago Formatting: Style & Definition Use of AI in Study.com Assignments Acceptable use of generative AI tools such as ChatGPT is outlined in the Study.com Academic Integrity Policy; please familiarize yourself with this policy to ensure that you have appropriately cited and used AI tools in an authorized manner in the creation of your assignment. You may wish to use GPTZero to ensure that your assignment is sufficiently unique and free from AI plagiarism. Reminders about using AI: AI may be used as a tool to support your process for creating this assignment but may not create or write your assignment response for you. Plagiarized submissions will not be graded and may result in disciplinary actions. All AI usage for this assignment must be properly cited and documented according to the guidelines in the How to Use & Cite AI Tools in College Saver Course Assignments article. In addition to in-text citations and inclusion in your Works Cited for the assignment, you must submit a separate document as outlined in the Documenting and Attributing AI section of the above article. It is important to fact-check any output you obtain using AI as it may produce inaccuracy or misinformation. You are solely responsible for all submitted work that you provide with the use of AI. Do not input any confidential or personal information while using AI tools. For additional information on generative AI tools, please refer to Understanding Generative AI as a Student: Uses, Benefits & Drawbacks. Grading Rubric Your essay will be graded based on the following rubric: Criteria Excellent (5) Good (4) Needs Improvement (2-3) Unacceptable (1) Total Possible Points Contextualization of Cultural Expression (x4) Thorough, insightful analysis of how cultural work connects to event or moment. Clear, relevant analysis. Adequately connects event and expression and is mostly accurate. Superficial or partial analysis. Weak or inconsistent connection and has some inaccuracies. Lacks analysis. Minimal or no connection and have many errors or misunderstandings. 20 Comparative Analysis (x4) Thoughtful and detailed comparison of the two works of cultural expression, clearly outlines the continuities and shifts in cultural ideas and values over time Clear comparison of the two works of cultural expression, identifies some continuities and shifts in cultural ideas and values over time Comparison of the two works of cultural expression is vague or lacks depth; limited discussion of continuities and shifts in cultural ideas and values over time No or limited comparison of the two works of cultural expression 20 Reflection & Synthesis (x2) Reflection is insightful, clearly connects analysis to modern cultural concerns or anxieties. Shows high-level synthesis. Reflection is relevant and adequately connects to modern cultural concerns or anxieties. Some synthesis is present. Reflection is superficial or only somewhat connects to modern cultural concerns or anxieties. There is limited synthesis. No reflection or off-topic. Shows no synthesis. 10