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3 pages/≈825 words
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MLA
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History
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Essay
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English (U.S.)
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Vermeer’s Hat by Timothy Brook. History Essay Paper

Essay Instructions:

Assignment on on Vermeer’s Hat: The Seventeenth Century and the Dawn of the Global World by Timothy Brook. Worth 20% of the Grade (we will not have the timeline assignment).
Write an essay discussing the use of primary sources in Timothy Brook’s Vermeer’s Hat. Choose at least two or three different primary sources in the text and discuss how the author uses the source, and connects it to the book’s overarching theme as you understand it.
Try to read the whole book but at least chapters 1, 3, 4, 5, and 8 (7 is also highly recommended). The book is not hard but somewhat detailed.
Discuss the nature of three primary sources, how the author employs them, and what you think these primary sources can reveal to us about the early modern period, and explain how they relate to the author’s main theme
This essay should be about three pages long, typed and double-spaced (at least 750 words). Please give your essay a meangingful title.
In discussing the primary sources you might ask the following types of questions:
What is the nature of the source? Is it a text, material object, and of what type?
Who made or wrote the source? What kind of person wrote or made it (status, level of wealth, gender, position, etc)?
What were their intentions?
Is the source prescriptive or descriptive? Does it suggest how something should be or does it describe how things are (On Good Manners is prescriptive because it suggests how people should behave, whereas a census record is descriptive because it describes an existing population)?
What are the limitations of the sources you have discussed? Does the author use them in an imaginative or unusual way? Does the author misinterpret the source or miss something you think is critical.
My recommendation is to pick different types of sources and write about each. You can choose a painting, an archaeological site (shipwreck), and a text the author uses. Make some overall point about what we know and don’t know about this period.
Please note there are a variety of topics in Vermeer’s Hat, many quite fascinating and include discussions of types of porcelain in Europe and China (ch 3), smoking habits in China and Europe (ch 5), attitudes toward foreigners (ch 4), capitalism and coinage (ch 6), transnationalism and issues of race (ch 7), summing up (ch 8).
Just rely on your own words and thoughts! Do not use any outside sources. The use of outside sources will result in a five point deduction.
Please note that I might use Turnitin.

Essay Sample Content Preview:

Vermeer Hat
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VERMEER HAT
In Vermeer's Hat: The Seventeenth Century and the Dawn of the Global World, Brook argues that globalization is perceived to be a modern phenomenon. This is because globalization began in the 17th century. Brook asserts that one of the main objectives of writing the book is to inform readers how goods, ideas, and people were moving around the world in a manner that their ancestors had no idea it would be possible. According to Brook, shipbuilding technology and navigation were the primary inventions that facilitated exploration and growth of trade. The author explores the root of world trade with the use of the six paintings by the Dutch Golden Age painter Johannes Vermeer. In the Book, Brook has used various resources like paintings to illustrate the effects trade on the Globe. Brook uses the artwork of Vermeer as windows into the history of the 17th century to develop the theme.
Paintings
Brook uses the paintings of Johannes Vermeer to develop a picture of the world that Vermeer lives. Through these arts, Brook has been able to find evidence of globalization and social, economic Phenomenon. For example, he can be able to find the operations of the Dutch East India Company, which were termed as the first multinational corporation in the world (Brook, 2009). The company could establish colonies, wage war, coin money, and negotiate treaties. It was a company that traders would compete to join. The company played an essential role in the trade between China, Dutch, and China.
The painting Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window by Johannes Vermeer
This is an oil painting by Johannes Vermeer. The art was completed in 1657-1659. The picture can be found on Gemaldegalerie in Dresden. The painting features a young woman who is standing in an open window reading a letter. The title of the painting is self-explanatory. In this painting, there is a table that is draped with a tablecloth, and there is a spoilt bowl that is placed on top of it. Brook uses the bowl of fruits as a window into the 17th century, especially Chinese porcelain, and how it started to become part of the Dutch lifestyle. The author has used this pain...
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