Rough Darwin Thesis/Half Intro Paragraph

Charles Darwin generated and published innovative theories on the mechanisms behind the transmutation (evolution) of species, completely contradicting the long-standing church beliefs on the genesis of man. The complex man behind the theories grew up with a scientific background: a mother who was a botanist, a grandfather who was an evolutionary pioneer among other subjects, and an education in one of Scotland’s most renowned research facilities at The University of Edinburgh. Darwin lived for some time in London, at the heart of the industry and capitalism, allowing him to experience first hand the truths behind Thomas Malthus’ economic speculations that suggested “survival of the fittest.” On an extended sea voyage focused on scientific research, he was among sailors who were religious skeptics causing him to question his own faith. Evidently Charles Darwin’s external influences are most likely the main explanations for his motivation to publish his radical ideas.

Imperialism: Perspectives through literature

WW1 Tech

Throughout the course of history, advances in technology have vastly affected the way humans fight wars. One could name countless additions to the human war cabinet that have, over the years, changed the manner of war. With the progression of personal weaponry, armor, artillery, there are countless examples. Within World War One, automatic weapons elevated warfare to a previously unforeseen level. The introduction of automatic weapons, weapons that could sustain a high rate of fire, made all formally used war tactics obsolete. Normally, these tactics in earlier wars consisted of men lining up across from each other on an open field and firing upon the opposing line until one group retreated. Automatic weapons made these tactics outdated, as a group of 500 men lined up in such a manner could be taken down with a machine gun in a few seconds. Machine guns showed their revolutionary worth most notably in World War One when they made crossing open battlefields an inevitable death sentence.
Utilized heavily in World War One, machine guns brought full armies to a halt, causing them to dig in for defense. Trench warfare was the new tactic developed in response to the machine gun because combatants could not be in the open or else they would be shot down by a machine gun. Moving only a few yards in trench warfare could have cost hundreds of men’s lives because of the devastating power of the machine gun. Normally, tactics in the war consisted of a heavy artillery barrage of the enemy’s fortifications to break down any obstacles and barbed wire in the way and to throw the enemy into a state of panic. Next, the army who just fired the artillery would climb out of the trenches and run toward the enemy’s trenches hoping they could take control of them. However, this tactic was extremely ineffective because although the artillery could have taken out a few machine gunners, one machine gunner could hold hundreds of men at bay. This new weapon created the very indecisive nature of World War One because armies would rarely advance into enemy territories, and if they did, it would be at the cost of thousands of soldiers. The significance of the machine gun was that war would never be the same. No longer would armies be able to see each other as intimately as they would have in conflicts like the Civil and Revolutionary wars.

John Stuart Mill Tentative Thesis

Though John Stuart Mill is now thought of as a breakthrough liberal thinker that developed revolutionary policies and ideas in many areas of philosophy, his legacy is not deserved; Mill merely copied the thoughts of previous philosophers, such as Jeremy Bentham and Adam Smith, and made them far more accessible to the general public.

Elizabeth Strutt and middle-class woman of the family enterprise in the 18th century

Dana Tom

Why were Elizabeth Strutt and many middle-class women of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries successful in contributing to their family enterprises, despite the imminent emergence of "the separate spheres" of the sexes?

Elizabeth Strutt possessed a unique, romantic marriage with her husband and thus earned the entrusted role as an economic contributor to the Strutt family enterprise, unlike the subordinate roles of most wives during the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. However, aside from her unconventional, marital partnership with Strutt, Elizabeth accurately represented the role of many eighteenth-century middle-class wives as the hidden investments of family industries before the later years of the Industrial Revolution. And yet, ironically, the economic contributions of women during the late eighteenth century eventually fazed them out of all economic activity during the nineteenth, as European corporations industrialized and grew and as “the separate spheres” of the sexes consequently emerged.

Elise's Austen/Gender Roles Thesis

Jane Austen, the acclaimed literary and poetic genius, became widely respected for her witty and pointed critique of gender roles in the 18th and 19th century.  However, despite her sharp tongue, her observations in Pride and Prejudice do not necessarily reflect the actual role of women during her time.

Bismarck Thesis

Because of Germany’s heightened interest in colonization, Bismarck chose to use nationalism as a means to unite Germany, help enforce total war, and mask separate actions and motives.

Calvi's Thesis on Simon Bolivar

Although the intense debate over what style of revolutionary Simon Bolivar was often takes two extremes; some claiming that he was a elitist who wanted to take power away from the Spaniards and only give it to white South Americans and some claiming that Bolivar was the first Latin American socialist, the truth lies somewhere in between (as usual). In actuality Bolivar was a pragmatist with little ideological conviction who simply wanted to get rid of the Spaniards. This is best reflected in the style of revolution he conducted, one that was aimed for a simple Republican goal and was based on the ideals of Napoleon rather than the radical Jacobins of the French Revolution. He also shows less conservative stripes with the type of revolutionary force he put tighter; having an army that even at the highest ranks had blacks and indigenous members, reflecting Bolivar’s realization of the diversity of Latin America.

Wilhelm the Pre Nazi

Ultimately, Kaiser Wilhelm II is responsible for the increases in nationalism, militarism and xenophobia that would pave the road to the Third Reich and the downfall of the German Empire.

Tentative Lord Byron (& The Greek War of Independence) Thesis

Despite the idealistic notions that may have driven the Greeks to the point of conflict, the outside involvement in the Greek War of Independence of 1821 through 1829 by those such as Lord George Gordon Byron and The London Greek Committee, with which the former was loosely involved, was fuelled mainly, if not purely, by self-interest, avarice, and a quest for acclaim.

Jack the Ripper Tentative Thesis

Although it is argued that Jack the Ripper is such a famous criminal because of the extent of his crimes and that he was never caught, but in reality he is so famous because he represented everything that West End hated about East End. Jack the Ripper became who he is because West End couldn’t get enough of him; to them, East End became the crimes that were committed in it.

Jane Austen's Bringing The Feminist Movement Back

Although it may appear that Jane Austen’s works disregarded
the events from the French Revolution, in reality she was subtly
incorporating her opinions of the war through her vivid descriptions
of society.

Jane Austen Thesis

Although Jane Austen may have not been the most recognized author during her lifetime, the more historians study her unique work, the more they begin to realize how much she impacted a woman’s role in society through her novels and poems about moral issues, realistic principles, and the portrayal of feminist tradition which is still valued today. The change in the way that Austen was perceived throughout different time periods explains the variation and evolution of the styles of writings from the 18th century to the 20th century. Because her work was more “boisterous” and not focused on romanticism like most novels did during the 19th century, it took time for the public and scholars to truly appreciate the variety and distinctiveness of her writings.

Percy Shelley and the Romantic Ideal

Through the opinionated and fervent eyes of Percy Shelley, Romantic literary ideals were anti- most of the problems that plagued England at the time. And so, Romantic poetry became a medium in which Shelley’s dissenting voice could be profoundly critical and could prescribe remedies for these problems. Thus, Romanticism flourished as an outlet for those whose ideals were growing further and further apart from the ideals that were guiding tempestuous England.

Evolution in Context

While debate over the theory of evolution had been occurring throughout the nineteenth century, Charles Darwin’s interpretation of evolution was received with such success because it came at the time in which it played directly to what industrializing Britain wanted to hear. Darwin’s theory both shaped and was shaped by the individualist climate of Industrial Revolution Britain.

Jane Austen-Communism Thesis

Through the works of jane AUsten we are able to see subtle yet substantial similarities between the communist-dominated East and the socialist-fearing West and leanr that despite their insisted Differences, the two polar political spheres are not quite so different.

Social Darwinism thesis

Some historians argue that Darwin’s two books The Origin of Species and The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex directly caused the emergence of Social Darwinism and that Darwin was in fact a Social Darwinist who’s theories were not solely intended for the animal kingdom. However, even though Social Darwinism and Darwin himself appeared to be interrelated, the new social theory was a result of the industrial revolution, the subsequent ideals of competition and individuality that followed, and the theories of Thomas Malthus and Herbert Spencer.

Ironies of Nationalism under King Leopold II

King Leopold II, of the newly formed country, Belgium, portrayed to the public his need to colonize the Congo in order to strengthen their unity and their reputation on the Europe stage however, the horrors that occurred in his "Free State" traveled worldwide causing mass human rights movements which led the state of Belgium to regain a nationalistic government and unite against their own leader. 

Victor Hugo Thesis

Victor Hugo had a vision and plan for France that differed from Napoleon III, which would have changed history, but unfortunately he spoke out against Napoleon and wound up in exile unable to influence France at all. His romantic view of the world led him to over harshly slander Napoleon, who admittedly should have followed Hugo’s advice to wage peace not war.

Karl Marx Influence on Unification of Germany

Bismark was suspect of Karl Marx's ideas on socialism as set out in the Communist Manifesto, and Marx's ideas had little impact on Bismark's policies during the 19th century unification of Germany.

Dickens' World (attempt at a thesis - incomplete)

A Dickens novel is almost always filled with numerous characters from all walks of life, but though often portrayed with extremity, sarcasm and ridicule, they all retain their humanity. Ironically, it is the faultless, incorruptible protagonists that the readers and historians have found boring and that it is only their circumstances or situations are relatable. Still, Dickens uses this mixture of fantasy and realism to mock his characters but not to blame them. Influenced by his own experiences, he painfully and truthfully portrays his world as the source of the plights of his characters and while the endings are often happy, the sense bittersweet throughout the novels reminds the reader that they are still grounded in the real world, and not a fantasy world of Dickens’ creation.