Economics History: The Great Depression

I have given all the resources as a online pdf version so you don't need to do extra online research.
There are three suggested essay topics. Students must read and cite at least two references. The more references an essay makes effective use of, other things equal, the higher the evaluation of the essay. It is the responsibility of the student to condense and summarize in order to stay within the length limit. In instructor evaluation of student essays, the most important consideration is the force of argument in terms of accuracy, clarity, and cogency. Most student essays suffer from inaccuracy or lack of clarity caused by sloppy English or sloppy thinking—the two are hard to distinguish. Hence, good English usage counts insofar as it helps make for clear, careful writing. It is also important that student essays stick to the question—the length limitation allows no space to stray--and offer a cogent argument, backed by citation of sources.
Suggested essay topics:
Cite evidence to support your claims.
1. Was there a ‘Malthusian Trap’ in Europe (1500 - 1640)? Cite evidence to support your claims.
2.What would you say was the primary cause of the Great Depression in the United States. How did the United States economy recover. How does this differ from the 2008 Recession in the United States. Cite evidence to support your claims.
3.Choose one country and argue whether its institutions have become more/less inclusive or more/less extractive in the last 100 years. Cite evidence to support your claims.
Rubric for Essays
1.
-Having a Thesis.
Do you tell the reader in the first few lines of the paper whether Kroszner and Strahan better explain what drove deregulation of branch banking than Krugman, or what have different economists identified as the main problems facing effective banking regulation?
2.
-Do you clearly understand the authors’ views?
-Are you attributing views to Kroszner and Strahan or Krugman and others that they do not actually hold?
-Do you understand where the differences lie in their theories about why banking was regulated and then deregulated?
-Have you succinctly described their views in your paper?
3.
-Do you critically assess the authors’ evidence and use the evidence from the authors to support your thesis?
-Do you make it clear why certain evidence given by one author discredits (in your opinion) the evidence given by another author?
-Or, if you think none makes a great case do you explain WHY certain evidence does not show what the authors say it shows?
4.
-Conclusion
5.
-Proper citation/referencing.
Note though, that the example there is when the author is talking about a vague topic. Do not say something like “Grantham says ___ “(Grantham 1992, page 1-21). Write down the specific page so we can verify what you are saying. “Grantham says ___” (Grantham 1992, Pg 1)