How and why do things happen?

Things never just happen… What do we mean by this? See if you understand from this example…

Alphonse the Camel Once upon a time there was a camel (called Alphonse). For various reasons (relating to an unfortunate accident during his birth) the camel had severe back problems. This was not the end of his misfortune, however, because he had an evil exploitative owner (called Frank the Camel Killer) who regularly overloaded his camels prior to taking them on gruelling and totally unnecessary round trips up and down mountains on his way to deliver goods to his customers. These customers, shockingly, were completely indifferent to these frequent and gross violations of the rights of camels and found Frank and his antics at least vaguely endearing. Well, one Friday, Frank had just finished loading-up Alphonse and his poor exploited fellow creatures for yet another gruelling and totally unnecessary round trip up and down the mountains. He had piled and piled and piled up the goods onto Alphonse’s back and was taking a break and reflecting smugly on his handywork, chewing a straw. On a whim he decided to add the bedraggled straw he had been chewing to Alphonse’s load. Alphonse groaned obligingly. He eyed his owner with disgust. He keeled over and died of radical and irreversible back collapse.

What are the reasons for Alphonse’s death?

Alphonse the Camel Once upon a time there was a camel (called Alphonse). For various reasons (relating to an unfortunate accident during his birth) the camel had severe back problems. This was not the end of his misfortune, however, because he had an evil exploitative owner (called Frank the Camel Killer) who regularly overloaded his camels prior to taking them on gruelling and totally unnecessary round trips up and down mountains on his way to deliver goods to his customers. These customers, shockingly, were completely indifferent to these frequent and gross violations of the rights of camels and found Frank and his antics at least vaguely endearing. As Frank’s customers got to know that Alphonse would not react to Frank kicking him, some of the customers started to kick Alphonse too. Well, one Friday, Frank had just finished loading-up Alphonse and his poor exploited fellow creatures for yet another gruelling and totally unnecessary round trip up and down the mountains. He had piled and piled and piled up the goods onto Alphonse’s back and was taking a break and reflecting smugly on his handywork, chewing a straw. On a whim he decided to add the bedraggled straw he had been chewing to Alphonse’s load. Alphonse groaned obligingly. He eyed his owner with disgust. He keeled over and died of radical and irreversible back collapse.

Draw a diagram showing the reasons for Alphonse’s death… Frank adds his straw Alphonse dies of a broken back Was it the Frank’s straw that killed Alphonse?

Look at your diagram… What was the very last thing that happened to Alphonse before he died? What problems did Alphonse have when he was a young camel? What problems other problems did Alphonse face when Frank became his owner? What problems developed while Alphonse worked for Frank?

Think chronology… TRIGGER (HE DROPPED DOWN DEAD BECAUSE OF THIS) SHORT-TERM CAUSE (THING THAT HAPPENED JUST BEFORE HE DIED or PROBLEMS THAT HAD GOTTEN WORSE) MEDIUM-TERM CAUSE (PROBLEMS THAT HAPPENED WHEN HE WAS YOUNG) LONG-TERM CAUSE (PROBLEMS THAT HAD EXISTED SINCE BIRTH)

Was it really the straw that broke the camel’s back?! Which of these theories do you agree with? Which do you disagree with? The straw triggered Alphonse’s death. The straw was the only cause of Alphonse’s death. It was Alphonse’s back problem which sparked his death. All of Alphonse’s problems were because of the way Frank treated him. All the unnecessary walking accelerated Alphonse’s death. The customers who kicked Alphonse contributed to his death

What do you think killed the camel? Look at the reasons on your diagram. What reasons do you think made Alphonse’s back problem worse? What reasons do you think might not have had a direct affect of his back but did not help? What reasons do you think could not have been changed or stopped? Think: What do you think caused the death of Alphonse? Discuss: Discuss your ideas with your partner. Remember to ask them to explain WHY they think this. Explain: What do you think caused Alphonse’s death?

How does this apply to History?

Why did the Second World War happen? The Second World War started in 1939 The main countries involved were Germany, Britain and France The war started when Germany invaded Poland Britain gave Germany 3 days to stop their invasion Germany didn’t so Britain declared war This explains what happened just before war between Britain and Germany started. These are some of the reasons or CAUSES of the Second World War. However there are other CAUSES. In fact many of the causes of the Second World War are linked to the First World War that ended in 1918. Therefore in order to understand WHY the Second World War started historians need to understand things that happened before.