French Revolution Dinner Party

INTRODUCTION / TASK / PROCESS / RESOURCES/EVALUATION / CONCLUSION

 

INTRODUCTION

Severed heads, starving masses, and the flash of gunpowder. These are the visions of one of history's more important events, the French Revolution. This quest challenges you to investigate the different viewpoints of some of its more famous participants.  When you have completed this web quest you will better understand the French Revolution.

THE TASK

You are hosting a "A Dinner Party". Your guest list will include four historical figures of the French Revolution and two guests for each figure. The following is what you must complete

• summary on prominent characteristics of each historical figure and where you discovered the information (textbook, web site, etc.)
• guest list
• 2 topics of conversation that connect guests and hosts
• seating arrangement at table
• typed essay that explains your project

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THE PROCESS Steps
Step 1: Summarizing French Revolution Characters
Analyze information on the following individuals during the French Revolution. Concentrate on the personal philosophy and personality of these characters. Use this information to complete the  Notable Figures Handout.
* Louis XVI
* Marie Antoinette
* Maximilien Robespierre
* Rousseau
 

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RESOURCES

Louis XVI

Tragedy of Louis XVI

A biography of Robespierre by Educational Broadcast	An encyclopedic outline of his life, work,  and influence
A History Guide discussion of Robespierre's intellectual opinions and influence	This site also has a short biography

Timeline of Rousseau's life	Many samples of both his written
Works and his musical compositions.	Rousseau short biography

Marie Antoinette

History of her childhood	Favorite pastimes
Speech on the Death of Marie Antoinette	A biography, and links to related sites

Step 2: Seeking a dinner companion.
Now select  guests to invite to the dinner party. These guests must be a historical or famous figure who shares common interests, hobbies or professions with your characters.
Your job is to select two guests for each host and identify two (2)  topics of interest  per guest that would be appropriate dinner conversation.
Use the Guest List Handout  and the following web sites to choose historical or famous figures to invite.

Biographical Dictionary

Current Celebrities

Presidential Biographies

Step 3: Seating the party-goers.

Experienced hosts tell me (e.g.. my mom and Martha Stewart) that the key to a successful dinner party is the seating. Analyze which participants share common experiences or interests. Use the Seating and Chat Chart to design a seating chart for your hosts and guests. Decide where each person should sit and list the two dialogue topics on the diagram. Be sure to complete the conversation topics on each person's left and right.

Step 4: Type a one page essay.
Type an essay explaining your dinner party.
 

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EVALUATION

Completion of Web Quest handouts with justification of answers.
A one page typed essay supporting your seating chart and conversation topics.
 
 

CONCLUSION

I hope that by having dinner with several famous historical characters, you have learned to appreciate the complexity of differing personalities, the challenge of different perspectives on the topic of the French Revolution and the use of the Internet as a research tool.

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