Viewpoints Comparative Questions

  1. Taken together, how do these three documents help explain the Mongols’ success?
  2. Compare and contrast the depictions of Mongol rule offered by the Chinese official and by Marco Polo. What does each tell you about Mongol rule? How would you explain the differences you note?

Marco Polo, The Travels of Marco Polo, trans. Ronald Latham (London: Penguin, 1958), 82–85, 87–88.