We'll take the reading quiz right away again.
Today we'll take a few minutes and clarify what you should expect for the "Absolute Monarchs on Trial" activity we'll hold early next week.
THE CHARGES: The
Absolute Monarchs of Europe are charged with: ignoring the needs
and well-being of the people, bankrupting the state, pursuing selfish
foreign policies and harming the futures of their states.
FORMAT: All witnesses should be prepared to give a "speech" in class. This
should be between 2 and 3 minutes. It need not be memorized. If you are
a real person, you should explain why "you" support a particular
monarch and/or the idea of absolutism. If you represent a "type" of
person, you should create a story consistent with your assigned side
and background. Prosecution witnesses may focus on one or more of the
charges against a particular monarch.
The
six monarchs will have two roles. First, they can question the
witnesses for the two sides. In addition, they will have a chance to
address the jury before deliberation begins. (All the witnesses
become the "jury" at this stage.) In this address, each monarch has
between 3 and 4 minutes to summarize his or her accomplishments as a
monarch and/or explain why they should not be convicted of the charges.
Our jury will then deliberate on the fate of each monarch, and they
also can ask questions of the monarchs at this point. (Note that there
may well be different verdicts in the different cases.)
EVALUATION: You will receive credit for both your "speech" and your participation/conduct during the rest of the trial.
We'll conduct our trial on Tuesday and Wednesday of next week. (Expect
the prosecution witnesses to present on Tuesday, while the defense
witnesses and the defendants will present on Wednesday. That will be
followed by our deliberations.)
Louis XIV of France - The "Sun King" Probably
the classic example of the absolute monarch is Louis XIV of France. As
you read, he sought total control of France and all aspects of life
there. By the peak of his reign, France had become the most powerful
country in Europe. We'll briefly focus on some of the key points from
the reading, and then we'll take a closer look at the court life at
Versailles and what that reveals about Louis XIV and absolutism.
Chateau de Versailles is
the official website for the palace and gardens made famous by Louis
XIV. There's a lot of neat stuff here, and I've highlighted some
things for you below.
Think about and discuss: To
what degree do modern states and leaders get caught up in ceremony and
symbolism? How useful to you think such efforts are?
The Age of European Absolutism: You probably worked with these types of charts last year, so this should be pretty straight-forward. Download a copy of the
Age of European Absolutism matrix.
(You can either print it out or type on your computer.) You can work in
a group of 2-3 if you'd prefer. Think of these as notes on these four
major figures. We'll discuss what you find on Monday in class, so these
should be completed by then. We'll be looking for major comparisons and
contrasts among the absolute monarchs.
HOMEWORK for tomorrow - Friday, November 4th:
Read
Chapter 21, Section 3, "Central European Monarchs Clash." (pp. 603-607)
Yes, there will be a quiz tomorrow, and it will be true-false.
The "Age of European Absolutism" matrix should be completed and ready for discussion at the beginning of Monday's class.
You
might think about and start preparing for your role in our "Absolute
Monarchs on Trial" activity that will begin next Tuesday.
