Evaluate the film as a viewing experience
Complete both Part A and Part B of this assignment.
Writing Assignment, Part A
Describe the emergence of modern Muslim nation-states out of the early modern Muslim world. In your assignment, discuss the politics and the agendas of colonial powers, in particular France and Britain, in dividing up the Ottoman Empire to carve out new political entities. Also, comment on the tensions and challenges that these new entities generated. Write a 3-page essay (between 700 and 900 words) on this topic.
Writing Assignment, Part B
You have watched the Public Broadcasting Service film, Islam: Empire of Faith. The film is a comprehensive depiction of Islam in its broadest sense?not only as a system of belief and ritual, but also as a civilization with all its social, political, and economic constituent elements. Your assignment is now to write a two-page (about 500-word) review of the film. In your review, address the following questions:
Does the film depict Islam accurately? Explain your conclusion.
Does the film have the potential to undo the many misunderstandings and prejudices about Islam that exist in American society today? In what way?
Has the film enriched your knowledge of and understanding about Islam in a way that the readings did not? If so, how?
What material does the film provide for comparing Islam and Christianity?
What does the film tell you about the linkages between Islam and contemporary Western civilization?
How do you evaluate the film as a viewing experience? Was it challenging, interesting, surprising? Express your reactions in your review.
