Problem
1) What major changes at the beginning of the 20th century would ultimately lead to hostilities between European powers?
2) How did the "Young Turks" seek to "cure" the "sick man of Europe?"
3) How did alliances, rivalries between European nations and nationalism help to cause World War I?
4) How did the decline of the Ottoman Empire help to cause World War I?
5) How did the Balkans help to cause World War I?
6) How is the following event comparable to the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand?
7) Why were the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance formed?
8) How does the following quote by Max Weber represent the viewpoints of Europeans at the outset of World War I? "This war, with all its ghastliness, is nevertheless grand and wonderful. It is worth experiencing."
9) Why is accurate to say that upon the conclusion of World War I, the vast majority of those involved in the conflict would disagree with Weber's quote?
10) What impact did new weaponry (the machine guns and submarines) have on World War I?
11) How were European economies impacted during World War I?
12) How were the economies of European colonies impacted during World War I and what role did the colonies play in World War I?
13) Why were Husssein Ibn Ali and Faisal examples of the multi-ethnic makeup of the Ottoman Empire? Why did the diversity of the Ottoman Empire contribute to its ultimate demise?
14) How did Britain's support of Zionists and its issuance of the Balfour Declaration serve as the foundation for the present day Israeli-Palestinian conflict?
15) How did World War I help to cause regime change in Russia?
16) Why were Mensheviks less likely to support individuals like Vladimir Lenin and Karl Marx?
17) Which revolution would you consider to be the most like the French Revolution, the October Revolution or the February Revolution? Explain your answer.
18) What event ultimately brought America into World War I despite the fact that most Americans were isolationists and reluctant to involve themselves in World War I? Be sure to mention the Zimmerman Telegram.
19) What influence did the United States have on World War I?
20) What was the impact of World War I on Europe?
21) Do you consider peace efforts of Woodrow Wilson, David Lloyd George and George Clemenceau effective? Explain your answer.
22) Why is the Treaty of Versailles considered a failure?
23) Why did Lenin call the New Economic Policy "two steps back to advance one step forward?"
24) How did pre-World War I China compare to pre-World War I Japan?
25) How can the Twenty-0ne Demands highlight the differences between post World War I China and Japan?
26) Why do the Guomindang, Yuan Shikai, Sun Yat-sen and Chiang Kai-shek represent the conflict between modernization and traditional cultural values that existed in China?
27) What could Mustafa Kemal be referred to as "the father" of modern Turkey?
28) How are Wilbur and Orville Wright, Charles Lindbergh and The Jazz Singer examples of new technologies?
29) Why was cultural relativism and Albert Einstein's theory of relativity in physics considered to be unnerving?