HST 372  Spring 2008

Final Take-Home Essay

You should choose one of the following for your final take-home essay.  Remember, it is worth more than than the first one, and I certainly expect quite a good one, since you are writing it at home.  I also expect to see clear evidence that you have read carefully the weekly assignments (where they are appropriate to the question), and both Goffman's and Peirce's books, both of which are very pertinent to each question. While I'm not looking for research beyond the required readings and books, I am looking for evidence that you have done the latter - not necessarily footnotes, but some evidence in your text that I can clearly see.

1. How was the Ottoman royal family structured?  How did this structure affect the building, and strength, of the empire?  And then, did the family structure play a role in the problems the Empire faced in the 17th and 18th centuries?

2.  Suraiya Faroqhi, a leading Ottoman historian today teaching in Germany, wrote that "the Ottoman Empire in the period from Suleyman to Selim III should not be viewed as having experienced 'decline' in any measurable form. Rather the concept 'change' is far more apt."  Obviously for Faroqhi, these two terms are different, the first bearing some moral content, the second merely descriptive.  Write an essay in which you elaborate on this view.