Karl Marx PSA

Marx, Karl and Frederich Engels. The Communist Manifesto. (Excerpts)  Modified from the Avalon Project.  1848. Yale University. http://avalon.law.yale.edu/subject_menus/mancont.asp(accessed September 18, 2013).

 

Marx believed that everybody should be essentially equal.  He believed that everybody should only do what they were capable of but still receive the same amount as everybody else.  Marx's reasoning for producing this document was because he didn't believe in the government that was in charge at the time.  He believed that this new type of government could remove poverty and realize the pressure of social classes from the population.  This document was produced during the industrial revolution.  This document is limited in its explanation of the Industrial Revolution, but Karl Marx did live in London during the Industrial Revolution so we do have a somewhat reliable source.  One again Marx's opinion was that everybody should be equal and hopefully poverty could be avoided. Also, he believed that people of the Communism party should express their views and opinions into the world and not be afraid.

 

 

*Indentation was attempted on every line except for the first one.

 

Luddites RAFT Assignment

The Luddites were a group that attacked factories and tried to destroy machines that had put them out of jobs. They were skilled weavers, mechanics, and other artisans.  They were neither opposed to technology nor for it.  They were against the usage of technology. They were against the training, wages, and conditions that were given to factory workers. They were against overdependence on technology. One first hand source we have is from a young girl that was a new factory worker in this time period.

 

 

My Dearest Cousin,

 

 

I know you are aware of my new position at the factory, but I must tell you it is just dreadful. They force us to operate these machines and it is much too dangerous for a girl like me.  The wages are horrible, I'm trying to help support my family but with the money I'm making it wont even help.  The conditions are dangerous and dirty and I can't stand it.  Thank goodness the new group they are calling the Luddites are standing up for people like me! They have destroyed many machines and it's given the factory owners much trouble which makes me extremely happy! I don't think I'm fit to join them so I will just pray for them to get us our wages and working conditions back to the way they used to be! I hope to speak to you soon.

 

 

Best Wishes,

 

Your Cousin Mandy

Curator Response

The curating process was challenging in some ways but also very rewarding at the end.  We started with 6 documents, and then had to analyze them and decide how to arrange them into an "exhibit".  This not only challenged our minds, but our creativity as well.  We had to arrange, caption, and glue our documents to make an appealing and interesting "exhibit".  The process started with simple analyzing of documents, then coming up with a creative title and captions, and finally putting it all together to make a interesting "exhibit". 

 

 

After all of this was completed, we got to go around and observe what other groups had created with their documents. Group D's title was "An era built on the backs of children" and their poster helped me learn that children were worked hard in unsafe environments for kids.  They showed 3 different pictures as examples of the hardships that kids went through.

 

Group E's title was "Cotton and slave boom in the industrial revolution" and they helped me learn that slavery was very prevalent during this time period. They showed a chart and a graph showing just how many slaves were involved.

 

Group A's title was "Before and After" and they showed us things that happened before the Industrial revolution and things that happened after the industrial revolution.  One interesting fact was that London's population grew 8 times bigger of the course of the industrial revolution.  It also showed us the effect of machines being created on families which caused some family members to lose their jobs. 

 

Group B's title was "Transporting the industrial revolution" and they showed us some of the effects of the creation of them steam engine and the creation of railroads.  They showed us a map that showed us after the steam engine was created, shipment of coal and other resources were able to happen much faster and therefore help to speed up production of different products.

Engels PSA

Engels, Friedrich. The Condition of the Working-Class in England in 1844. Swan Sonnenschein & Co., 1892. Pages 45, 48-53.

In this book, Friedrich Engels is expressing the condition of the working class in England. His purpose for producing this document is to give the people that weren't around during this time period a picture of what is was like back then for the working class. Friedrich Engels is definitely a reliable and trustworthy source because he went through these tough condition when he was 22 and working for a mill. He knows first hand what conditions were like so he is a very believable source. This document teaches us about the hardship for the working class during the Industrial Revolution. It shows that conditions were very tiresome and unsanitary. It teaches us that the people that experienced this went through a lot of hardship.  This document is a little limited however because this is only one person's perspective. It would be better if we had multiple people's perspectives that agreed with each others. The author's opinion is that the working conditions were very dirty and harsh. The evidence this author uses is the places where the workers slept and used as their housing. He describes this area to be severely grimy and filthy and almost unlivable. The author is trying to convince the reader that life was dirty and harsh for the working class during the Industrial Revolution.


*Indentation was attempted on every line except for the first one.

Syria Seminar Article

          The current situation in Syria is not looking good.  An ongoing civil war has caused the Syrian government to use chemical weapons on their own people.  The group I observed definitely seemed to be confident with the words that they were saying and they definitely had done their research.  Early on, a main focus point of this group was the history behind this civil war and also the different groups that are involved in this war.  They talked a lot about the past to get a better understanding of the topic they were discussing.

One option that was discussed during this meeting was whether to flee the small town that they lived in currently or whether to flee the town looking for a refugee camp.  Some pros of fleeing that town is the thought that their families would be safer is they fled to a refugee camp.  One con however is the debate on whether or not refugee camps are as safe as they sound.  Another good thing is that they chance of them being attacked at a refugee camp is smaller than the chance of them being attacked in their town.  Another bad thing however is that going to a refugee camp would only be a temporary solution and they were discussing whether temporary safety was worth leaving their old lives behind.  Throughout the group, it seemed as though people were split on whether to flee or not.

Next, another discussion topic that they went over was whether or not they supported foreign intervention in their country. Every single one of the people in this discussion agreed that they supported foreign intervention.  They all agreed that they needed help from an outside source mainly because their own government is suspected of committing the chemical attack.  Also, the people agreed that allowing foreign intervention into their country would reduce the number of casualties rather than if nobody stepped in.  They thought this mainly because the civil war that had plagued their country had caused over 100,000 deaths already and if nobody stepped in, then the death count would only increase. 

My opinion on the first point is that the people at the meeting should flee their town.  I believe they should do this because if they stay then they have a higher chance of being attacked.  I would think that safety would be their number one priority, especially if they have a family to take care of.  Even though they had their doubts whether the refugee camp was as safe as it seemed to be, I believe it is a better option than to stay in their town. 

On the other subject, I agree with the entire group that foreign intervention is a good idea.  If my country was in a civil war and it put myself and possibly my family in danger, I would be upset if other countries didn’t do anything to help us.  I think the people in the group made the right choice on this subject.