The Civilian Experiences in World War Two The Strains of War: Civilian Experiences in World War Two Length: 1,000-1,500 words (4-6 pages, 12-point font) The focus of this two-part mini-paper is on civilian experiences during World War Two.
In this assignment you are asked to: 1) Critically summarize the first chapter of Sean Kennedy, The Shock of War: Civilian Experiences, 1937-1945 (chapter 1: “The Strains of Mobilization,” pp. 13-48); 2) Using the knowledge gained through reading the Kennedy chapter, critically assess a primary source about civilian life in Nazi Germany (the source is provided as a link, below). Part One: Write a critical analysis of chapter 1 of the Kennedy book (“The Strains of Mobilization.”). This analysis should accomplish three main tasks: – briefly outline the main argument in the chapter; – concisely describe the key information provided by the author in support of the main argument; – discuss the evidence used (look in particular at the endnotes on pages 46-48). Estimated length for part one: 3-4 pages Part Two: Part 1 will have helped you to gain some background knowledge of civilian life during the war, and you can use this knowledge to help you critically assess the following primary source: “SD report to the Party Chancellery on “Basic Questions Regarding the Mood and Attitude of the German People,” November 29, 1943.” Please note that this is a two-page document and is available at: http://germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.org/sub_document.cfm?document_id=1585 The key question is: “what we can know” from this source? To answer this question you need to: – Identify who wrote the source, what audience it was intended for, when and where it was produced, and if we know why was it preserved and by whom? [and tell us why these things matter to the credibility of the source]. If there is not explicit evidence from the source to answer these questions, you might speculate, but base your speculations on what you’ve learned from the course thus far OR from the Kennedy chapter. – Explain the content of the source. – Given what you know about the creation/production/preservation of the source, tell us “what we can know” from the source. Estimated Length for Part Two of the assignment: 1-2 pages. An A Paper will: Style: -have your name, student number, TA’s name and course number on the first page -be double spaced on either one-side or two-sided paper -include page numbers -not contain spelling errors or significant grammatical problems -have a clear writing style -include bibliographic citations for both sources used Content: -identify Kennedy’s main argument and clearly explicate content and sources -successfully analyse the primary source to identify purpose, audience, bias, content -quotes from the source where relevant to the discussion -tell us “ what we can know” (and what we can’t, due to the source’s limitations) -not contain factual error
