Far Eastern History II: Rutgers, Chinese Porcelain

Order 100% Plagiarism free paper

Far Eastern History II Spring 2018 Paper #1Read all instructions carefully!!!For this paper you will read selections (chapters 3 and 5) from Vermeer’s Hat: The Seventeenth Century and the Dawn of the Global World, a book written by the historian Timothy Brook. This book examines the patterns of trade and exchange that developed between Asia, Europe, and the world during the early modern period (1500-1800 CE). The book is called Vermeer’s Hat because (as you will see) Brook uses the paintings of the 17th-century Dutch artist Johannes Vermeer to examine the ways in which European society was changing during this period amid its intensifying connections with the rest of the world, especially East Asia.
The goal of this paper is to use the examples discussed by Brook to analyze the new forms of “globalization” that were emerging during this period. You will write a 3-4 page paper (Size 12 type, double-spaced, 4 pages maximum) on the topic given below. Use evidence from the book to support your arguments. You may draw on material from other class readings and lectures to provide context if you feel that this is necessary, but you must primarily use Brook’s book. No outside research is allowed. No Internet sources should be used.
Whenever you use an example from Brook, you must include the page or pages that you are using in a footnote – for example, “Brook p. 40” or “Brook pp. 40-5.” It is important to cite Brook whenever you are using the book’s examples as evidence. The entire paper must contain at least 6 footnotes referencing pages in Vermeer’s Hat. We will talk more in class about how to cite the book in your paper.Topic:
An important theme in Vermeer’s Hat is the way in which the global circulation of new products changed local values and customs in societies across the globe. Some products gained tremendous value in new societies – for example, in Europe there was a great demand for Chinese porcelain (“china”). There was much less demand for European goods in China, with some exceptions.
For your paper, I want you to discuss the ways in which products and commodities such as porcelain, tobacco, silver, and so on traveled the globe, in the process gaining new value and meanings. Did these products have different meanings in different places? Why did some products become valuable in certain places while others did not? Did people use these products in the same way everywhere around the globe, or were there variations in how they were consumed or used? You do not have to address every single one of these questions, but these are the kinds of themes that I would like you to discuss. You must discuss at least two examples of products or commodities that saw changes in meaning, use, or value as they circulated around the world.
In addition to discussing these examples, you must make a larger argument about how local cultures and societies changed under the new early modern global economy described by Brook. What was the impact of these new products and commodities? In your
view, did access to these new goods simply change societies for the better? Or was there a darker side to early modern globalization? Use evidence from the reading to support your answer.
How to write this paper: As you go through the reading, take careful notes whenever you come to an example or passage that you think is relevant to the topic. The most important thing is that you make a compelling argument based on evidence: every one of your opinions or claims should be supported by evidence from the book (or from lectures or other class readings). We will talk more about how to use evidence and cite sources in class. If you have any questions about this, feel free to email me or set up a time to meet.
Additionally, I would be happy to go over a first draft of your paper with you. If you are interested in doing this, print out a copy and bring it to my office hours or, if that time does not work, email me to set up another time to meet.Rutgers-Newark history department honor pledge: The history department requires that every assignment, including this paper, include the following signed statement:
“On my honor, I have neither received nor given any unauthorized assistance on this assignment. (Name) (Signature – typing your name is fine) (Date)”. I cannot accept papers that do not have this statement.
“Unauthorized assistance” refers to academic integrity violations, which are described here: http://policies.rutgers.edu/10213-currentpdfThe paper is due on Monday February 19th, by the start of class (10am) on that day. You must submit the paper through Blackboard. Go to the “Assignments” tab on the left, and then submit the paper under the “Paper #1” category. I will only accept papers in .doc or .docx format – not in hard copy, and not in .pdf.
Late papers will lose a grade level if they are handed in after 10am, and then an additional grade level for every day that they are late. For example, an A paper handed in after the 10am deadline will become an A-. If it is handed in after midnight on that Monday (so handed in on Tuesday), then it will become a B+. If handed in on the next day (Wednesday), it will become a B, and so on.