How religion facilitated trade and how trade facilitated the spread of those religions Custom Essay

(You can find the film in http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPAHSzaS6xY) Some argue that trade facilitates peace,

in that trading partners might be less likely to annihilate each other. (If you saw the Celt flic, Caesar’s

invasion of Celtic Gaul is a refutation of this claim.) Others argue that peace enables trade. The Pax Romana

is credited with expanding trade throughout the Roman Empire. The Han and Kushan empires performed a similar

service in East and Central Asia. Trade is risky enough—uncooperative weather, dishonest people) without

adding political insecurity to the mix. It is no coincidence that the premodern period—featuring vast empires

—is associated with expanding trade routes overland and by sea.
Taking a similar tack, some argue that trade enables the spread of religions (e.g. Islam and Buddhism). But

here too the causation can work the other way: certain cultural features of religions can work to facilitate

trade.
Employ the film segments (Story of India: Spice Trade and Silk Route and Islam, part 1) as well as Bernstein,

especially chapter 3 (Camels, Perfumes, and Prophets) and 4 (Baghdad-Canton Express) to explain the extent to

which religion and trade are complements: how religion—particularly, Islam and Buddhism– facilitated trade

and how trade facilitated the spread of those religions. Refer to specific passages or incidents to support

your argument.
While you may use other sources to get general bearings, you may not incorporate other sources—paper or

electronic—into the paper without clearing their use—in advance—with BJ. More to the point, if you employ any

other source to construct or support your argument, you must make a paper copy of the particular passage—

highlighted–and submit it along with your essay.
More generally, refer to the document entitled Formatting Writing Assignments for guidelines: how to cite

sources and how to construct intelligible sentences.
This element should not be more than two pages, typed as a Word document, in 10 font, 1.5 line spacing. In all

likelihood, the first time you write this essay, it will be twice as long as it needs to be. First, commandeer

the content. Then work the prose to tighten your argument. Remember Mark Twain who said something to the

effect of “I’m sorry for writing such a long letter; I didn’t have time to write a shorter one.” Focus. Choose

pertinent examples. Try not to stray from your argument.