PDP 1 – Instructions in Letter Writing by an Egyptian Scribe 

Author Bio: The author was seemingly anonymous. With this being the case, the piece still provided a first person perspective, centered on Egyptian text that described different opinions and insights into the lifestyles of ancient Egypt. 

Date/Context: The article was placed at one point around 1200 B.C.E. This time period displayed the development of Egyptian writing systems, and the author as a tutor educating others of the profession. The author gave way to many political, economical, and social issues surrounding such profession and time. 

Summary: The document is informing the reader about the job of the scribe. The author regards the job as very important, saving those of the profession hardships that many others face. The author is very instructing on how to go about this, and lists many examples of the “fate of the unskilled laborer”; unknown, an ass in front of the scribe. In hindsight, the author raises the position of a scribe to be safe, beneficiary, and of great service to the society. 

Key Quote: “Be a scribe, and be speared from soldiering! You call and one says: ‘Here I am.’ You are safe from torments. Every man seeks to raise himself up. Take note of it!” 

PDP1- The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Author Bio: The United Nations was formed in April 1945, immediately following World War II. Fifty countries' delegates met in San Francisco at the United Nations Conference on International Organization to form the international body that would replace the League of Nations. This assembly, known as the United Nations, stated in its Charter that went into effect on October 24, 1945, that they are committed to rescue succeeding generations from the suffering of war by promoting peace. The United Nations now consists of 193 countries, all of which are Member States of the General Assembly. There is also the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, the International Court of Justice, the Trusteeship Council, and the UN Secretariat. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights specifically was written by the Human Rights Commission under the chairmanship of Eleanor Roosevelt.

Date/Context: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was accepted by the United Nations on December 10, 1948, at the United Nations General Assembly in Paris. It was a result of World War II, and was a major step forward for the young United Nations, which had only been formed three years earlier. The declaration was the first document to assemble and present thirty fundamental human rights, of which many are now incorporated into the constitutional laws of democratic nations. This was a turning point for many countries in how they treated humans and what rights they respected.

Summary: Accepted by the United Nations in 1948, three years after the conclusion of the Second World War and the creation of the United Nations, it begins with a preface that outlines the reasons for creating the declaration and states that the General Assembly proclaims it as a common standard for all people and nations that strives to promote respect for these rights and freedoms, including freedom of speech and belief, and liberty from fear and want. It immediately launches into the rights of humans. The first two articles state that all humans receive equally these rights, without exceptions. The following 9 articles, Articles 3 through 11, describe the many rights concerning freedom, law and justice. Humans have the right to life, liberty, and security of person, and cannot be subjected to slavery or torture; they also all have recognition as a person before the law and have the same rights concerning justice. Article 12 protects people's security, privacy, family, home, and correspondence. The next five articles focus on freedom in movement between countries, right to asylum, right to nationality, and rights about marriage and property. Articles 18 and 19 grant people the freedoms of thought, conscience, religion, and opinion. The following articles, up to Article 28, concern people's rights in society. Everyone is allowed to peacefully assemble and associate, take part in government, receive equal public service, receive social security, have the right to work and equal pay for equal work, the rights to rest, leisure, an adequate standard of living, and education, and the right to participate in cultural life. The last three articles, Articles 28, 29, and 30, entitle people to a social and international order that realizes people's rights, subject people only to limitations that are determined by law to protect other people's rights, and end by stating that nothing in the document may be interpreted in a way that allows any State, group, or people to perform or engage in any act that destroys the rights and freedoms listed. 

Key Quotation: "Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world, whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people...Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge...All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights."

PDP1 - Yalta Agreement

Sorry for the delay - unexpected family emergency!

Author Bio:  This document was an agreement reached by President Franklin D. Roosevelt of the United States, Prime Minister Winston Churchill of Great Britain, and Generalissimo Josef Stalin of the Soviet Union, the most powerful leaders of the Allied countries.  

• Roosevelt a democrat was elected the 32nd president in 1932 at the height of the Great Depression.  Although he began his fourth term in office in 1945, he would die in office on April 12, 1945.  
• Churchill the Prime Minister of Great Britain also held the titles of First Lord of the Admirality and Minister of Defense.  His strong personality and leadership is often credited as a primary factor in bringing about a British victory.   
• Stalin rose to power during the mid-1920's bringing an end to the civil war that enveloped the Soviet Union after the Bolshevik Revolution.  Know for ruling with an iron-fist, Stalin committed the USSR to the Allied cause in 1941 after Germany invaded.

Date/Context:  By 1945, much of the world was at war and divided into two opposing spheres: the Allied Powers, led by Britain, the US, and the USSR, and the Axis Powers, including Japan, Germany, and Italy.  This war brought about destruction on a massive scale.  Germany's Nazi regime was committed to destroying the Jewish "race" and any other group or individual that did not fit into the "ideal."  In the Pacific, Japan was seeking to establish a vast empire.  This document was written BEFORE the official end of the war (VE Day = May 8, 1945 & VJ Day = September 2, 1945) but lay the foundation of a post-War era in which the United States and the Soviet Union divide the globe into spheres of influence.  Further, this document established principles for a new international organization to replace the defunct League of Nations.

Summary: Written in February 1945 and released in the US in March, this document created a new international organization (the United Nations), demanded the complete surrender Germany, called for German reparations, established borders for Poland, Yugoslavia, and Southeastern Europe, and defined the conditions by which the Soviet Union would join the war against Japan.  The United Nations was to include a Security Council in which each of the 5 permanent members (Britain, USA, USSR, France, & China) would have veto power.  This new organization was also set with the task of dividing up and/or granting independence to territories after the war.  This agreement reasserted the Atlantic Charter, calling for new governments chosen by the people in the areas of Europe that were occupied by Germany.  Further, upon the its surrender, Germany would be dismembered and divided into zones of influence.  Germany was to pay reparations for the costs of the war with "the chief purpose of destroying the war potential of Germany."  This Yalta Agreement also define the borders of Yugoslavia, Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, and Iran and established that Turkey would control the Dardanelles and the Bosporous.  Finally, Stalin agreed that the Soviet Union would join the war against Japan only after German surrender and under the condition that Soviet claims in the lands controlled by Japan would not be questioned by other Allied states.

Key Quotation:  "The Crimea Conference of the heads of the Governments of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics...came to the following conclusions:"

PDP1- "The Cartographer's Mirror"

Title: PDP 1- "The Cartographer's Mirror"

Author Bio: Arthur Jay Klinghoffer is a college professor, who teaches political science and has pursued studies in the fields of Soviet Foreign Policy, Russian politics, and African politics. In his work, "The Cartographer's Mirror," he includes details about his childhood fascination with maps, and describes his view of maps as, "the visual representation of world politics." This early interest in geography prompted Klinghoffer to devote his studies to the impact of maps and the Earth on worldwide interactions. As a result, he seems to view maps primarily as a political tool and neglects to acknowledge that they have numerous other uses in which minor subjectivity does not play a role. For example, road maps are simply a means of navigation and are not more or less helpful based on the values or position of the cartographer. Due to his slight bias and field of expertise, he fails to portray the entire scope of maps and focuses almost solely on the aspects that relate to politics. The author takes on a somewhat hypocritical potstion in this document, as he criticizes the bias present in cartographers without removing his own personal bias from his analysis. Overall, and despite several instances of personal opinion and subjectivity in his work, Klinghoffer seems to be a reliable source within his facet of study.

Date/Context: This primary document was written in modern times with modern day knowledge and technology at hand. As a result of this position the author was able to provide a full analysis of the long history of cartography and compare today's geographic and geopolitical understanding with that of the first societies to map out the world. This stance is advantageous because it allows for a fair consideration of all developments in the field of cartography. Klinghoffer's analysis is not specific to any historical period, but generalizes and covers a large portion of the span between ancient and modern societies.

Summary: While maps are often considered to be indisputable and entirely reliable, all maps inherently contain some form of cartographer bias or personal influence. Just as humans once  naturally assumed that the solar system is centered around the Earth, cartographers consciously or subconsciously center maps from their personal perspective and slightly misrepresent the Earth. Klinghoffer denotes that this subjectivity is inevitable because individuals are incapable of completely removing themselves from their own "values, aesthetics, and politics." In addition, mapmaking naturally involves some elements of political perspective and even creativity. As a result, maps tend to, "'construct' the world rather than 'reproduce' it." As seen in the works of early cartographers, maps often include elements of fantasy and imaginative invention to fill the  unknown areas of the Earth. While modern maps have largely eliminated these unsupported guesses, there is still an excessive amount of uncertainty and variation. For example, the world and its geography is constantly changing due to continental drift, shifts in sea levels and tides, manmade features, and relentless political border disputes. Due to this constant evolution of Earth's geography, maps are drawn and redrawn, which results in perpetual controversy. While maps remain an essential tool to the political and geographic function of the entire world, they must be used critically and with an understanding of their innate bias.

Key Quotation: "Maps and pictures are two-dimensional representations of a three-dimensional reality, and both contain an altered perspective even if there is an effort to conceal it."

PDP1 - Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries & People

Author Bio: The author of this text is the United Nations. The United Nations is a world group that wants to promote global cooperation. They were started after World War II ended and replaced the League of Nations. They also want to promote human rights, environment safety, and peace within the world. This article was adopted by the General Assembly which is one of the United Nations main assemblies. The United Nations' headquarters is stationed in New York, however it still looks at the bigger picture wants world peace. This organization's efforts to try and reach world peace made them get recognize and won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2001. This group solved many dilemmas in the world and helped set up many international structures around the world. Although the United Nations started off small, as time progressed they stated to increase. They wrote this article in order to show ways human rights and global peace can be achieved.

Date/Context: This article was adopted in December of 1960. The article's main job was to promote human rights and peace around the world. During this time, there was no peace or cooperation in the world. There were a lot of terrible acts that happened during this time period and the United Nations wanted to get the world out that the world needed peace among each other. The organization wanted to stop the horrifying things that happened.

Summary: The main idea of the article is to promote human rights and peace. The article begins to talk about how humans no matter where they are have to have equal rights in order to progress freedom and better standards. Then, it states how people are determined to get freedom by themselves no matter who they are, however their are predicaments that might stop them from achieving this goal. Next, it goes on to talk about how people should accept the assistance of the United Nations so they can put an end to colonialism, and people just have to listen to themselves. The article says in order to gain peace there must be an end to colonialism everywhere around the world. This also means that the new freed territories must attain their own independence and must be allowed to practice their own rights on their own national territory. The the article goes on to explain ideas that could end colonialism really quick. These ideas are allowing humans to practice their rights, allow countries to have their own independence, allow freed territories to gain independence, and finally everyone must respect other people's rights.

Key Quotation: "Solemnly proclaims the necessity of bringing to a speedy and unconditional end colonialism in all its forms and manifestations."

PDP1 - Why Study History?

Author Bio: The author, William H. McNeil, is a renowned historian and former professor at the University of Chicago. McNeil would go on to write a plethora of books relating to the history of western civilization. With this in mind, evident biases may include the knowledge of western civilization rather than "big history". In other words, McNeil is writing from the standpoint of a "pure" historian. He doesn't necessarily needed any sciences, social or natural, to back of any of his information. Furthermore, since he fought for the U.S army in the European Theater during World War II, his experiences with warfare inevitably shape his beliefs and morals after the war. Nonetheless, this document is reliable because it provides us the necessary information that McNeil shared with us through his knowledge as a historian. He did an exemplary job reasoning his argument through his analysis of the benefits of learning the history of human civilization.

Date/Context: This document, in essence, summarizes why history is to be taught to students across the nation and in addition the outcome it can have on the students for the future. Furthermore, the document is fairly dated, as it was written in 1985. Keeping this in mind, it is important to recall that during this time period, the Cold War was at its height. Moreover, events that occurred in the past twenty years were unknown of what the article was written. Such events such as 9/11 has lead to the world's outlook on terrorism in a whole new spectrum. In retrospect, the time period in which this document was written brought us an analysis that may seem outdated since many new events unfolded between 1985 and today.

Summary: This article begins by abruptly asking the reader why should we care about influential human beings such as Cleopatra, Confucius, or George Washington. McNeil goes on to explain how historical knowledge is literally one collective and constructive memory of humans. Memory is also something that is not fixed and permanent, as when time passes, new experiences unfold. Furthermore, many of these memories aren't particularly sweet, as they may be bitter and not something people would like to revisit. McNeil points out how the changing perspectives of historical understating are the best introduction to any practical problem of real life. With this in mind, it is vital that history is taught to every young person. History, which is our collective memory, allows us to share ideas and beliefs about the past - as there are many different point's of view's and interpretations of the past. In addition, examining all specific parts of our collective memory helps young people understand it the best and most accurately. This means that the addition of the role of women and minorities would make historical education complete by enabling all perspectives to be analyzed by students.. According to McNeil, historians have figured out the three best levels of teaching history to young people. The first level has to do with personal-local history. This level is the most imperative since it allows the students to understand what had occurred quite literally around them and can use that knowledge to better understand themselves. The next level has to do with nation history. This lays the foundation for students to understand who we are as a nation and to, as stressed before, help them to understand themselves better. Last but not least is global history, which is perhaps the most time-consuming to teach. If a student understands alien religious beliefs, customs, and cultures, they will be able to interact much more suitably at a social level. This allows the student to finally broaden his or her sense of humanity. In essence, the understanding and education of history and historical events can help make an individual understand him or herself better while in addition understanding the world around them.

Key Quotation: "Historical Knowledge is no more and no less carefully and critically constructed memory." This quotation is paramount because it serves as the touchstone for what McNeil will be arguing for the rest of the article.

PDP1 - History's Unmarked Grave of Discarded Lies

PDP1 - History's Unmarked Grave of Discarded Lies

Author Bio:  John McConnell and a team of two other speechwriters wrote this for President Bush to address the damage and casualties brought about by the terrorist attacks on 9/11. This group had previously written four State of the Union addresses for Bush. President Bush and this team show bias against groups like Al-Qaeda not only because of their attacks, but he disapproves of the way that they train and control their recruits. There is also religious bias in the speech, which is exemplified in phrases such as, "may God grant us wisdom and may he watch over the United States of America." Although Al-Qaeda's motives and ideals are discussed, they are mostly described as "evil" and "enemies", which are relative terms. The use of propaganda techniques is evident, such as the use of words with positive connotations when describing America and Americans, and negative words when describing Al-Qaeda. Also, Bush appeals to the crowd's emotions when he tells them that he will keep George Howard's police shield as a reminder of his actions. One other important example of propaganda is the use of generalizations. The phrases, "All of America," and "all who believe in progress and pluralism," group together and speak for everyone who is seen as "good". All of the "bad" people, such as terrorists, are all put into one group with "fascism, Nazism and totalitarianism,"

Date/Context: This speech was given to Congress on September 21, 2001. This was ten days after the terrorist group Al Qaeda attacked the Pentagon, World Trade Center, and Hijacked a commercial airliner. There were nearly 7,000 deaths in the United States as well as countries around the world. Many of these countries had already begun to offer support and supplies to the U.S.

Summary:  The purpose of this speech was mostly to inform Congress and the American public that the attacks on 9/11 were planned and executed by an extremist group called Al-Qaeda. Another large portion of the speech is purely for inspiration and acknowledges many heroes during the attack, proposes plans to destroy terrorist organizations, and aims to give hope to Americans by explaining how we will overcome the "dark threat of violence" from terrorists. This speech also gives information on the extremist group, explains new safety measures, and thanks allied countries for their support in the time after the attacks.

Key Quotation: "Tonight we are a country awakened to danger and called to defend freedom."