Questions:
Humanities Final Exam
1. A traditional narrative common to members of a tribe, race, or nation that frequently includes the supernatural and explains a natural phenomenon is called:
A. symbol
B. lyric
C. allegory
D. myth
2. Which of the following is a dominant theme in Oedipus the King? *
A. Humans cannot escape their fate.
B. Man can control their life.
C. People can determine their own destiny.
3. A long narrative poem in elevated style presenting characters of high position in adventures forming an organic whole is called: *
A. a narrative
B.an allegory
C.an allusion
D.an epic
4. What genre is Bhagavad Gita? *
A. philosophical poem
B. drama
C. haiku
5. "Don't claim any man god's friend until he has passed through life and crossed the border into death-never having been god's victim" (Oedipus Rex lines 1744-46). These closing lines reflect the theme: *
A. Man will be rewarded with eternal life in god's kingdom.
B. The gods are kind to all except the truly evil.
C. The gods toy with humans' lives, and only after a person dies is there peace.
6. Which of these does NOT describe Krsna/Krishna?
A. Arjuna's friend
B. narcissist
C. deity
7. Griots were prominent figures in Mande culture and performed the roles of professional historians and: *
A. kings
B. noblemen
C. orators
D. merchant
8. What genre is Oedipus the King? *
A. lyric poem
B. drama
C. narrative
9. Which of the following presents a series of bawdy and entertaining tales told within a frame narrative? *
A. The Canterbury Tales
B. PopolVuh
C. Oedipus the King
D. Bhagavad Gita
10. When Oedipus says, "What good were eyes to me? Nothing I could see could bring me joy," he is continuing the play's metaphor about: *
A. redemption
B. blindness
C. moral goodness
D. happiness
11. No one knows for sure what was changed when PopolVuh was written down by the _____ priest. *
A. Portuguese
B. Spanish
C. French
12. Deformity and impairment are rarely discussed as heroic or beneficial traits, especially when one character is female, yet two characters from one of the epics below struggle with extreme disabilities that prepare them for honorable roles. Identify those characters: *
A. Sogolon and Sunjata in Sundiata
B. Arjuna and Krishna in The Bhagavad-Gita
C. Oedipus and Jocasta in Oedipus Rex
13. Sundiata illustrates the Mande peoples' cultural practice of animism and the introduction of which other religion? *
A. Christianity
B. Hinduism
C. Islam
D. Judaism
14. In The Canterbury Tales, the pilgrims travel in which country? *
A. England
B. Nigeria
C. India
D. Mexico
15. Timbuktu, an important trade and religious center for the ancient Mali empire, is located on the continent of: *
A. Mali
B. Africa
C. France
D. Europe
16. PopolVuh contains creation stories as well as the history of which culture? *
A. Aztec
B. Mayan
C. Incan
17. The pilgrims in The Canterbury Tales begin their journey during which season? *
A. Spring
B. Summer
C. Fall
D. Winter
18. Oedpidus Rex was written by:
A. Shakespeare
B. Sophocles
C. Euripedes
D. Medea
Part 2: In a brief essay, answer the following: After reading the texts in this course of the semester, why do you think these texts are still being taught in Humanities classes? Using at least one text, explain how it's themes can be related to everyday life. What universal lessons and messages can be learned from them.