HIS 382: History of the Silk Road in China

Paper Topics #2

(Paper #2 Due Friday, April 21^st)

Directions: Choose any one of the following paper topics.  These are “think piece” papers, so no additional outside research is required.  Please read both of the books Marco Polo: the Travels and The Travels of Ibn Battuta, along with relevant articles, carefully before writing.  Compose a strong topic sentence, locate evidence in the texts to support your position, and proceed.  Your paper should be 5-7 pages in length.  Please include appropriate citations for all your references to the texts.  Overdue papers will be penalized.  Please include page numbers in your papers.

1. Compare the world views of Ibn Battuta and Marco Polo.  How did the two world travelers differ in their responses to strange people, places and things?  What were the ultimate goals of their respective travels?

2. Describe and discuss the similarities and significant differences between the major metropolitan centers visited by Marco Polo and Ibn Battuta during their travels.  How did cities (and city-states) function differently along the trade routes depicted by these travelers?

3. What do the travel accounts of Marco Polo and Ibn Battuta tell us about the status and mobility of women in the countries they visited?

4. How did trade concerns and mercantile activity influence the travels of Ibn Battuta and Marco Polo?  What would you distinguish as the particularly “Silk Road”-esque qualities of their travels?

5. Describe and discuss the different receptions Ibn Battuta and Marco Polo received from Mongol rulers throughout Eurasia?  What would account for those differences?