Question

In the period from 1200 to 1450 CE, trans-Saharan trade networks influenced state formation in West Africa.

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Develop an argument that evaluates the extent to which the process of West African state
formation was influenced by trans-Saharan trade.
Consider the above prompt. What limitations does the prompt place on the writer, and what choices
can the writer make?

Answer 1

The prompt limits what the writer is allowed to include about the trans-Saharan trade network to just state formations and only the trade network. It also limits the location of networks to the trans-Saharan and limits state formations to West Africa.