Post-Writing: Organization and Language/Style Sample Essay
WORLD HISTORY PROJECTORIGINS/ LESSON 6.1ACTIVITYORGANIZATION AND LANGUAGE/STYLE: SAMPLE ESSAYUnless otherwise noted, this work is licensed under CC BY 4.0. Credit: “Organization and Language: Sample Essay”, OER Project, https://www.oerproject.com/1Roman Empire and Han China Sample EssayPrompt: How did states respond to the societal and political collapse after the fall of the Roman Empire and the Han Dynasty around 1200 CE?During the height of the Roman Empire and Han Dynasty, trade flourished as goods, spices, and animals moved both east to west and west to east along the Silk Roads. After the fall of the Han Dynasty in the third century and the Western Roman Empire in the fifth century, the volume of trade declined. However, this decline was merely a temporary setback rather than a prolonged reduction of trade. The fall of the Roman Empire and Han Dynasty led to a decline in trade along networks of exchange.The decline of trade after the collapse of the Han Dynasty is documented in the letter written by Sogdian merchants in the fourth century. Sogdian merchant Fri-khwataw describes conditions in Guzang, a city along the Silk Roads, stating, “From inside ChinaI have heard worse ... news day by day ... there is no caravan departing from here” (Document 1). Fri-khwataw describes how merchants loaded with trade goods and travelers were stranded in the city. The political and economic instability in China after the fall of the Han Dynasty led to a decline in the number of caravans traveling along the Silk Roads. No longer could Silk Roads merchants count on the military protection and upkeep of routes that the Han provided. In addition, the decline of the Western RomanEmpire around this same time led to a decrease in the purchase of expensive trade goods from Asia. Therefore, while Silk Roads trade declined after the collapse of the Roman Empire and Han Dynasty, trade did not cease to exist. In fact, networks of exchange did not take that long to recover, as evidence suggests by the seventh century, trade was once again thriving.Once the Tang Dynasty (618-907) took control of China, trade began to increase across networks of exchange. By the early eighth century, trade in the town of Turfan appeared to be increasing. Historian Valerie Hansen writes about merchants selling an enslaved girl and horses along the Silk Roads. While trade appeared to be making a comeback, merchants were required to provide guarantors that the enslaved and horses were not stolen (Document 2).The requirement of guarantors could indicate that while trade was increasing, the Tang had not been able to fully protect the Silk Roads while they sought to maintain control over China and increase their military. The Tang had trouble with the Uighurs to their northwest in the eighth and ninth centuries, which may have diverted Tang attention from protecting the Silk Road routes to focus on their borderlands (Document 5). However, even with this diversion of military strength to the northwest border,
WORLD HISTORY PROJECT ORIGINS / LESSON 6.1ACTIVITYORGANIZATION AND LANGUAGE/STYLE: SAMPLE ESSAY2merchants appeared to have found ways to trade along networks by requiring guarantors indicating that trade continued despite the fall of both the Han Dynasty and Roman Empire.Trade along the Silk Roads continued to increase from the ninth through the twelfth centuries as China was transitioning from the Tang to Ming dynasties. The painting of Buddhist monks, one from East Asia and the other from Central Asia, indicates a agreeable sharing of religious principles between people located hundreds of miles away (Document 6). Trade around the Eastern Roman Empire’s capital city of Constantinople continued well into the twelfth century. The Jewish traveler Benjamin of Tudela wrote of his experiences in Constantinople, describing it as “a busy city, and merchants come to it from every country by sea or land, and there is none like it in the world except Baghdad...” (Document 7).Merchants from a lot of regions met on Constantinople to trade indicating that networks had fully recovered by this time.The collapse of the Western Roman Empire and Han Dynasty led to a decrease in trade when compared to that prior to the second century. While it did take a few centuries to recover, trade did not go away. Communities continued to trade during these collapses and trade increased from the seventh through the twelfth centuries as new kingdoms and dynasties was established. As the Tang Dynasty and Eastern Roman Empire used influence and protection across the Silk Roads, trade increased.