Essay 101

1. Essay 101 (A guide to writing a good essay for Global)

2. Introduction??? What introduction? • Have a brief introduction that introduces the theme in a basic way and end with a thesis. • Your thesis is your main claimfor the entire essay. Geography has had a big impact on a lot of civilizations. Geography was especially important in ancient civilizations. Two civilizations that were impacted by their geography greatly were Egypt and China.

3. Start each body paragraph with a claim, then, give the evidence. Egypt was greatly impacted by its geography, especially its desert climate. Ancient Egypt was located in northeastern Africa in the Sahara desert. As a result its climate is very hot and dry. This had a big impact on where Egyptians settled and their religious beliefs. Because of the lack of water Egyptians had to settle right near the Nile. Without the Nile there would be no Egypt as it was the only source of freshwater for their crops and made the land fertile when it flooded. Egyptians relied so much on the Nile they created a calendar to predict its flooding and even prayed to the gods so it would flood on time. In ancient civilizations people believed the gods controlled natural events like the flood of the rivers.

4. Explain how and why ! • Instead of China was isolated and was very ethnocentric. • Explain how this is so or why it happens. China was isolated by many geographic barriers including deserts, mountains, rainforest and a large body of water. When a civilization is isolated it becomes very ethnocentric, which is believing it is superior to all others. As a result of China’s isolation as an early civilization it developed a very ethnocentric culture.

5. Give more examples…they help prove your claim! • Instead of… Sumer’s location made it very easy to get to and to invade. • Try adding in a relevant example. Sumer’s location at the cross-roads of Africa, Asia, and Europe made it very easy to get to for trade, but also easy to invade. For example, Sumer was conquered by the Akkadians, who were then conquered by the Babylonians.

6. Is it a claim or evidence? Egypt is located along the Nile River. Evidence China’s geography caused it to be a isolated a very ethnocentric civilization. Claim The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers flooded unpredictably. Evidence Egyptians believed mummifying bodies allow them to achieve eternal life. Evidence There are two types of monsoon winds, wet and dry. Evidence The dry climate in Egypt affected their religion. Claim The climate of India had an impact on the way they traded. Claim