Frankenstein’s Civilization
BIG HISTORY PROJECT / LESSON 5.3ACTIVITY FRANKENSTEIN’S CIVILIZATIONUnless otherwise noted, this work is licensed under CC BY 4.0. Credit: “Frankenstein’s Civilization”, OER Project, https://www.oerproject.com/1PurposeComparing and contrasting early complex societies will help you identify the key factors that contributed to the success—or decline—of some empires.Key information•Geography and the environment includesfactors such as land, weather, and natural resources.•Political structure is how leadership and power is organized.•Culture refers toa society’s beliefs, traditions, language,arts,and achievements.•Society is how people are organized, including social classes, roles, gender norms, and labor systems.Process1.Working in small groups, divide thematerials below so each person is responsible for reading or watching one. Each item should be chosen by at least one member of your group.Circle your selection.•“Mesopotamia”article•Egyptvideo•“Indus River Valley”article2.Fill in the tablebelow for your chosen material.
BIG HISTORY PROJECT / LESSON 5.3ACTIVITY FRANKENSTEIN’S CIVILIZATION2Categories“Mesopotamia”Egypt“Indus River Valley"Geography and the environmentPolitical structureCultureSocietyDecline and transformation
BIG HISTORY PROJECT / LESSON 5.3ACTIVITY FRANKENSTEIN’S CIVILIZATION33.Your goal: Create the strongest possible society by combining the most successful elements of the historical civilizations aboveinto a single “Frankenstein-style”society. With your group, select what you think are the strongest characteristics in each category in the table above. For theDecline and Transformation category, decide what you think is the most important weakness.4.Use a large sheet of paper or your computer to build your group’s Frankenstein empire. Your empire should include all of the following:•Name of your Frankenstein civilization•An imagethat representsyour society, its ruler, or anotheraspectof your society•Descriptions for each of the categorieslisted in the table above, and how your society overcomes the weakness you identified.5.Pair with another group to present your Frankenstein empire and explain your choices for each category.6.After comparing with another group, independently write a three-or four-sentence response to this question: Why would your Frankenstein society survive over all the others?