AP World History Summer Assignments 2016
Welcome to AP World History for the school year 2016-2017! Over the course of the school year we will explore 10,000 years of human history, learn valuable skills, and take the AP Exam. This is an exciting class that will allow us to look at the big picture of history, trace cultures over time, and examine human interactions. All summer work will be due the first day of school, 2016. Ultimate measurement of your expertise: AP World Exam, May 11, 2017.
Summer Assignments: All of which can be obtained from the class wikispace ( http://shs-ap-world.wikispaces.com/ )
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1) Reading and working on the first three chapters of the textbook.
2) Reading “A History of the World in 6 Glasses” by Tom Standage
3) Some basic geography work on maps.
XC) Watching and writing about ONE historical movie.
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1) Starting the course reading/work in the textbook
Hopefully, you will be able to go in to the SHS library and check out the AP World textbook: Traditions and Encounters. The librarian will inform me and I, you. The goal is to get a head start on the reading required in the course. At the class wikispace, on the Summer 2016 page, you will be able to download instructions for the first three chapters. Alternatively, I will post at our wikispaces site pdf’s of the first three chapters of our book (a newer edition) so that you can read it online or print out a copy you can highlight/annotate.
2) The Non-fiction Reading: “A History of the World in 6 Glasses”
This book will give you an overview of the time periods, regions, and cultural customs we cover in AP World.
It is available in multiple formats -- major bookstore, online booksellers, for the Kindle, iPad, and the Nook. So, you may feel free to obtain it in another format. However, I will have the complete book available to you at our class website. I also hope to link you to an audio file of the book for those who’d rather listen and/or reinforce their reading. Your study of the book will be broken down into the six glasses, with questions to which you will respond in writing. To enhance your understanding, I will also have Mr. Duez’ screencasts regarding the book available to you on the Summer 2016 page – where you will find all that is necessary for the summer work.
Disclaimer: The use of this book as a summer reading assignment in no way represents any endorsement by Saddleback High School of the use or misuse of any of these beverages, alcoholic, caffeinated, or otherwise. The book merely offers an innovative and interesting perspective to initiate our year-long discussion of world history.
**There will be online discussion questions for you to answer. This aspect of the assignment will be extra credit.
3) Geography work
The study of history is geography dependent, so the sooner you familiarize yourself with the world’s general organization, the more you will get out of the reading and discussion. This is an easy and general beginning to our study of geography this year. The geography assignment is posted on the Summer 2016 page of the class wikispace. The directions are on the printout.
XC) Historical Films
During the course of the school year, our class time is so valuable, that we will not be able to watch a complete film. Thus this assignment is a chance to do that and have a relatively painless introduction to some of our coursework. Each student must watch one movie, from the posted list and complete a film analysis for the movie. The films are listed in the general time periods we will be using to divide up the course. Choose one from the time period you think interests you the most. If you have friends who are also planning to take the course, you can all watch the same movie, but you have to turn in separate written components. Watch the movie together and have a discussion of it so you understand it better! I have indicated which are available on Netflix, but you can check rentals and the public library as well.
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***Please note the Rating of each film. Some of these movies are rated “R”. Parental permission is needed to view “R” rated movies if you are under the age of 17. You may easily complete this assignment without choosing any “R” rated movies.
Film Analysis Requirements:
For each film, number and answer the following questions.
1. Name of Film & Year of Release
2. Describe the plot of this film—minimum of one paragraph
3. Describe the point of view in this film and if there is any evidence of bias—minimum of one paragraph
4. Assess the validity of this film for purposes of studying World History (i.e. how historically accurate is it? appropriateness? knowledge conveyed? entertaining? etc.)—minimum of two paragraphs
AP World History Movie List
Film Format:
Title of Film (Year of Film-pay attention to this!) Approximate Length in minutes Film Rating***
Brief summary of film.
Netflix = The versions that are available on Netflix.com if your family has a subscription.
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8000 BCE—600 CE
The 300 Spartans (1962) 110 min Unrated
Essentially true story of how Spartan king Leonidas led an extremely small army of Greek Soldiers (300 of them his personal body guards from Sparta) to hold off an invading Persian army now thought to have numbered 250,000.
Netflix = DVD
Spartacus (1960) 190 min PG-13
The slave Spartacus leads a violent revolt against the decadent Roman empire.
Netflix = DVD & Blu-ray
Cleopatra (1963) approx. 200 min Unrated
Historical epic. The triumphs and tragedy of the Egyptian queen, Cleopatra. Starring Elizabeth Taylor.
Netflix = DVD & Streaming
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1966) approx. 100 min Unrated
A wily slave must unite a virgin courtesan and his young smitten master to earn his freedom.
Netflix = DVD
Jesus Christ Superstar (1973) 110 min G
Film version of the musical stage play, presenting the last few weeks of Christ's life, told in an anachronistic manner.
Netflix = DVD
Ben Hur (1959) 215 min Unrated
When a Jewish prince is betrayed and sent into slavery by a Roman friend, he regains his freedom and comes back for revenge.
The Message (Mohammad, Messenger of God) 1977 200 min PG
Handsomely-mounted historical epic concerns the birth of the Islamic faith and the story of the prophet Mohammed -- who, in accordance with the tenants of Islam, is never seen or heard (as this is offensive to certain islamic schools of thought).
Netflix = DVD
The Emperor and the Assassin (Jing Ke ci qin wang) (1998) 160 min R
In pre-unified China, the King of Qin sends his concubine to a rival kingdom to produce an assassin for a political plot, but as the king's cruelty mounts she finds her loyalty faltering.
Netflix = DVD & Streaming
The Ten Commandments (1956) 220 min G
The Egyptian Prince, Moses, learns of his true heritage as a Hebrew and his divine mission as the deliverer of his people.
Netflix = DVD
600 CE—1450 CE
The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc (1999) 160 min R
A young girl receives a vision that drives her to rid France of its oppressors.
Netflix = DVD & Blu-ray
Constantine and the Cross (1961) 120 min Unrated
Somewhat fictionalized dramatic account of Late Roman Emperor Constantine, his rise to power, and his establishment of religious tolerance among Roman subjects. Constantine's adoption of Christianity allowed this small persecuted religion to sweep throughout Europe as the empire's power waned.
Simon of the Desert (1965) 45 min Unrated
The ascetic religious Simón believes he is a sinner and decides to self-inflict a sacrifice, living like a hermit on the top of a pedestal in the middle of the desert to be closer to God and resist the temptations of the world. His followers are peasants and travelers that believe that Simón is a saint capable of performing miracles and they crowd to hear his speeches. However, Satan tries to tempt him with the pleasures of the world.
Netflix = DVD
El Cid (1961) 190 min Unrated
Epic film of the legendary Spanish hero, Rodrigo Diaz ("El Cid" to his followers), who, without compromising his strict sense of honour, still succeeds in taking the initiative and driving the Moors from Spain.
Netflix = DVD
Becket (1964) 150 min PG-13
An English king comes to terms with his affection for his close friend and confidant, who finds his true honor by observing God's divine will rather than the king's.
Netflix = DVD, Blu-ray & Streaming
The Lion in Winter (1968) 135 min PG
1183 AD: King Henry II's three sons all want to inherit the throne, but he won't commit to a choice. They and his wife variously plot to force him.
*Be sure you are not getting the 2003 version!
Netflix = DVD
A Man for All Seasons (1966) 120 min Unrated
The story of Thomas More, who stood up to King Henry VIII when the King rejected the Roman Catholic Church to obtain a divorce and remarriage.
Netflix = DVD & Streaming
Elizabeth (Elizabeth I: The Virgin Queen) (1998) 125 min R
A film of the early years of the reign of Elizabeth I of England and her difficult task of learning what is necessary to be a monarch.
Netflix = DVD & Blu-ray
Ivanhoe (1952) 110 min Unrated
Returning from the Crusades in the Holy Land, Ivanhoe learns that King Richard the Lionheart is imprisoned in Austria. Once in England, his pleas to pay the ransom fall on deaf ears as Prince John and cronies enjoy their current situation far too much. Joining forces with Robin of Locksley, Ivanhoe takes steps to raise the money all the while trying to re-establish his relationship with his father who disowned him years previously
Netflix = DVD
1450—1750
Cyrano de Bergerac (1990) 140 min PG
Based on a late 19th century play about a long-nosed early 17th-century Frenchman. Embarrassed by his large nose, a romantic poet/soldier romances his cousin by proxy.
Netflix = DVD
The Mission (1986) 125 min PG
18th century Spanish Jesuits try to protect a remote South American Indian tribe in danger of falling under the rule of pro-slavery Portugal.
Netflix = DVD
The Agony and the Ecstasy (1965) 140 min Unrated
The biographical story of Michelangelo's troubles while painting the Sistine Chapel at the urging of Pope Julius II.
Netflix = DVD & Streaming
Black Robe (1991) 100 min R
In the 17th century a Jesuit priest and a young companion are escorted through the wilderness of Quebec by Algonquin Indians to find a distant mission in the dead of winter. The Jesuit experiences a spiritual journey while his young companion falls in love with the Algonquin chief's beautiful daughter underneath the imposing and magnificent mountains. Dread and death follows them upriver.
Netflix = DVD & Streaming
The Last Valley (1991) 125 min PG
People in a small German village in the last valley to remain untouched by the devastating Thirty Years' War try to exist in peace with a group of soldiers occupying the valley.
Fire Over England (1937) 90 min Unrated
In 1588, relations between Spain and England are at the breaking point. British sea raiders regularly capture Spanish merchantmen bringing gold from the New World with the support of Queen Elizabeth I. After a plot to depose her is discovered, she enlists Michael Ingolby, whose father was killed by the Inquisition, to go undercover and infiltrate the court of Philip of Spain.
Vatel (2000) 105 min PG-13
In 1671, with war brewing with Holland, a penniless prince invites Louis XIV to three days of festivities at a chateau in Chantilly. The prince wants a commission as a general, so the extravagances are to impress the king. In charge of all is the steward, Vatel, a man of honor, talent, and low birth. The prince is craven in his longing for stature: no task is too menial or dishonorable for him to give Vatel.
Netflix = DVD
Cromwell (1970) 140 min G
Disgusted with the policies of King Charles I, Oliver Cromwell plans to take his family to the New World. But on the eve of their departure, Cromwell is drawn into the tangled web of religion and politics that will result in the English Civil War.
Netflix = DVD
1750—1900
The Madness of King George (1994) 100 min PG-13
A meditation on power and the metaphor of the body of state, based on the real episode of dementia experienced by George III [now suspected a victim of porphyria, a blood disorder]. As he loses his senses, he becomes both more alive and more politically marginalized; neither effect desirable to his lieutenants, who jimmy the rules to avoid a challenge to regal authority, raising the question of who is really in charge.
Netflix = DVD