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Seniors ~ MIddle Ages Essay

ROUGH DRAFT (two copies): Friday 1/11
FINAL DRAFT (sources attached): Monday 1/14

Your assignment is to write an essay of two (non-honors) to three (honors) pages on a specific aspect of medieval life (see topics below). Your report should include information from no more than TWO sources, cited according to MLA. Your essay must be typed. With the final draft, you must also include a copy of each source you used. Staple everything together, with the essay on top.

Note that all information from your sources – whether quoted directly, paraphrased or summarized – must be cited. MLA requires that the author include the author’s last name (or first word of the title in quotes) and a page number (none for web pages) at the end of the sentence, in parentheses.

Below is a list of possible topics:

Social Order
Knighthood
Feudalism
Chivalry & Courtly Love
Slavery / Serfdom

Religion in the Middle Ages
Pilgrimage
Heresy
The Crusades
Holy Grail
Judaism
Paganism

Science & Medicine
Humoral Theory
Hygiene
Alchemy
Plague (Black Death)

Medieval Life
Food & Beverage
Fashion
Women’s Rights
Commerce / Economics
Education
Games / Sports

Medieval Law
Magna Carta
Crime & Punishment

Arts & Entertainment
Music – minstrels, ballads
Drama / Theatre
Fine Arts – painting, weaving, etc.

Try the following sites:
Wikipedia: Middle Ages
BBC British History: Middle Ages
A Chaucerian Cookery
The Labyrinth: Resources for Medieval Studies
Middle Ages
Middle Ages: Exhibits Collection
Medieval Life
Medieval Sourcebook

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