 The Paper (Exam)
 Consists of five (5) topics, each with six questions. You
have to answer two questions from two different
topics.
 Timing
 You will have 90 minutes. Roughly 45 minutes per
question
 TAKE 5 MINUTES TO PLAN OUT YOUR ESSAY
OR ELSE…
Each topic will have six (6) total questions. The questions will
have the following format
 3 of the 6 will be “named questions” which specify a
specific leader, state, war, & etc.
 Example: Analyze the methods used by either Castro or Mao
to maintain his position as the ruler of a single-party state.
 2 of the 6 will be “open-ended” or general questions.
 Example: Examine how and why one leader of a single-party
state was able to make a successful bid for power.
 1 of the 6 will ask about “social, economic, or gender
issues.”
 Example: Discuss the role and status of women in two single-
party states, each chosen from a different region
Hint: WWII
is counts for
two regions:
Asia &
Europe
Some questions will demand responses from different
regions. Please note that the USSR is part of Europe
What themes should you focus on?
 Different types of warfare
 Characteristics of different types of wars: total, limited, civil,
guerrilla
 Origins and causes of wars
 Long-term, short-term, and triggering events of conflicts.
Also, the role of economics, ideology, political, and religious
in conflicts
 The nature of 20th-century wars
 The characteristics of the actual fighting. Analysis of tactics
and weaponry used on land, sea, and in the air. The effect of
technology on the development and effectiveness of tactics.
In addition, you should examine the economic and social
impact of the conflict
 The effects and results of wars
 Results of the wars (Political, economic, social) as well as the
ability to form lasting peace treaties
What themes should you focus on?
 Origins and nature of authoritarian and SPS
 Examine the rise to power. What kinds of circumstances
made it possible (long-term & short term)? What methods
did they use to take power?
 Establishment of Authoritarian and SPS
 Once the leader has taken power, how do they deal with
opposition groups? How is power maintained?
 Domestic Policies and Impact
 How was the state actually structured? What kinds of policies
were carried out? How were social and economic policies
carried out? Attitudes toward women, religion, education,
and culture are important areas of focus.
Left Wing
Right Wing
 Socialism, Communism
 Fascism, Nazi-ism
 Lenin, Mao
 Franco, Hitler
 Total Wars:
 WWI, WWII
 Civil Wars:
 Spanish Civil War, Russian Civil War, Chinese Civil War
 Guerilla War
 Chinese Civil War
You can always interpret wars to be a combination of types
Causes, Practices, and Effects of War
 Compare and contrast the causes of two wars
(excluding the First World War), each chosen from a
different region.
 Analyze the results of two wars, each chosen from a
different region
 How far is it true to say that economic resources,
rather than a belief in a cause, win wars?
 “Wars create more problems than they solve.” Discuss
this claim with reference to the causes and results of
two wars (each chosen from a different region) during
the 20th century.
WWI and WWII are the best examples of total wars. WWII
can count for two regions.
 What do you understand by “total war”? Select one 20thcentury war to illustrate your understanding.
 Evaluate the contribution made towards the war effort by
civilians on both the home front and the battlefields in two
wars, each chosen from a different region.
 Examine the effects of a war and the fear of war on the
civilian population of two countries, each chosen from a
different region.
 Analyze the use and effects of propaganda in two wars,
each chosen from a different region.
 Analyze the causes of two 20th century civil wars, each
chosen from a different region.
 Why did foreign intervention occur so frequently in
civil wars of the 20th century and what impact did this
intervention have on two civil wars each chosen from a
different region?
 Analyze the reasons for the outcome of one civil war.
How did the outcome affect the country in which the
war was fought?
 To what extent has any civil war in the 20th century
settled the issues that caused it?
 Examine the reasons for, and the contribution of,
guerilla warfare to the outcome of one 20th-century
war.
 With reference to specific examples, account for the
adoption of guerilla warfare and assess its
effectiveness.
 Analyze the results of one 20th-century treaty or peace
settlement
 In what ways, and with what success, did post-war
peacemakers attempt to deal with the problems which
produced the conflict? Specific references should be
made to two peace settlements
 “Peace settlements create conditions for new conflicts.”
With reference to at least two settlements explain to
what extent you agree with this statement.
 To what extent did technological developments ensure
victory in 20th-century wars?
 Compare and contrast the role of technology in two
wars of your choice.
 How and why did technological developments play an
important part in 20th-century wars?
 Examine the role of warfare either at sea or in the air in
two wars, each chosen from a different region.
 Compare and contrast the use of naval warfare in two
wars, each chosen from a different region.
 Assess the role of air power in two 20th-century wars.
 In what ways, and with what results for 20th century
wars, did tactics change
 Assess the social and economic causes of any 20th-
century war.
 Assess the social and economic effects of one war on
two countries involved, in the ten years following the
end of the war.
 Assess the economic and social results on the civilian
population of one 20th-century war.
 With reference to two wars, each chosen from a
different region, explain to what extent the role and
status of women was affected.