How did the Black Plague and the Great Famine contribute to the decline of the Middle Ages?

Use what you have learned in the lesson as well as information from the documents to support your claims.

Sample response: The Black Plague and the Great Famine contributed to the decline of the Middle Ages because both events affected the general population of Europe. The Black Plague was a pandemic that struck Europe and took the lives of many. People began to become obsessed with trying to find new ways to prevent the epidemic from spreading. They also began to look for an explanation as to why this event occurred. The Great Famine caused hysteria due to the lack of food and malnutrition among Europeans. After these events, people began to change their outlook on life.