Revolution, Protest, and Freedom Assessment 1

HIST 305: Revolution, Protest, and Freedom

Assessment 1

Spring 2026

This assessment asks you to sit, think, examine your notes, and reexamine the readings in

order to effectively answer the question. Give yourself enough time to do all of this. It is

worth 100 points, or 20% of your overall grade for the course. You should make an

argument that is based upon a persuasive and accurate use of evidence. As an essay, it

must have a thesis (located in the introduction and underlined), body paragraphs that lay

out the evidence used to support the thesis, and a conclusion that restates the thesis and

discusses why it is important. Please submit your essay by Friday, February 20 at

midnight.

The Essay Question:

Karl Marx wrote that Revolutions are the locomotives of history.1 Historians consider the

Russian Revolution as a quintessential communist revolution in the sense that it was the

first, and, it created one of the most powerful and longest-lasting communist states in

history. To what extent did the Revolution change peoples lives? How did Bolshevism

provide ordinary people with a language, ideas, and means of action to challenge the

oppressive autocracy of the Tsar and the social and cultural norms that dominated

Russia? To answer these questions, discuss the poor working conditions that Europeans

faced in the 19th and early 20th centuries, explain why Marx wrote the Communist Manifesto

in 1848, assess why communism appealed to so many people that it caused a Revolution

in 1917 (why werent people content with reforms), and finally, evaluate the extent of

changes after the Revolution.

Essay Requirements:

Format

o The essay should be typed, 3-5 pages, 12-point font.

o Proper organization: the essay should include one introductory paragraph with a

thesis that is underlined, body paragraphs that contain evidence, and a

concluding paragraph.

Argumentation

o A thesis that is argumentative not descriptive.2 It should directly answer the

essay question in one-two sentences.

1 Marx, The Class Struggles in France, 1850.

2 Heres an example of a descriptive thesis: The Russian Revolution of 1917 led to many important events.

This thesis is weak because nobody would disagree with it; it is a simple statement of fact. Heres an

example of an argumentative thesis: The Russian Revolution was a transformative event because it led to a

significant shift in how people lived their lives, which is best demonstrated by changes in gender roles. This

o Evidence that is used throughout the essay that supports the thesis.

o Watch the video tutorial for tips on how to write a history paper that has an

effective thesis and good use of evidence.

Evidence

o Use evidence that is accurate and relevant to your thesis.

o You must use the following primary sources: the collection of documents on

Blackboard that show the poor working conditions of workers; The Communist

Manifesto; Love of Worker Bees.

o You must use a minimum of four direct quotes: at least one direct quote from

the collection of primary sources posted on Blackboard; at least one direct

quote from The Communist Manifesto; and at least two direct quotes from Love

of Worker Bees. You may use more than four direct quotes.

o Use footnotes to cite your sources using Chicago style (Turabian), and introduce

and analyze the quotes that you use as evidence (see example in the footnote

for this sentence).3 Watch the video tutorial for guidance on how to use

footnotes.

Ethics

o Proper note-taking, citations, and use of sources will allow you to avoid

plagiarism and fraud (accidental or purposeful). UNDs plagiarism and fraud

policy applies to this assignment, so make sure that all words/sentences that

are not your own are cited.

thesis is strong because it will need evidence to support it, and if the evidence is effective, the thesis will be

persuasive.

3 Heres an example of how you can introduce and analyze a direct quote: Factory conditions in Britain in the

mid-19th century were terrible. The British parliament initiated investigations into them and produced the

Sadler report of 1832, which detailed the horrors. As one child laborer, Michael Crabtree, put it. … (Sadler

Report, 1832).

I have attached the readings below that you need to reference.

Some other readings I cannot upload are:

• Alexandra Kollontai, Love of Worker Bees,
• The Communist Manifesto