What similarities and differences do you see between the institutions and laws established by medieval European rulers and those of the Roman (Chapter 6), Byzantine (Chapter 8), and Chinese (Chapter 13) emperors?
What factors over the centuries enabled the Christian Church (Chapters 6, 8) to become the most powerful and wealthy institution in Europe, and what problems did this create?
How would you compare the role of trade in economic development in the Islamic world (Chapter 9), Africa (Chapter 10), Southeast Asia (Chapter 12), China (Chapter 13), and Europe in the period from 800 to 1400?