Question 1

Although prevalent in the ancient world, the notion of Plinian races died out long before the beginning of European colonization of the New World.

Accepted Answer

This statement is incorrect. The notion of Plinian races was actually used by European colonizers to justify their treatment and enslavement of indigenous peoples in the New World.

Question 2

A Papal declaration of the 1500s (Sublimus Dei) declared that American Indians lacked human souls, and therefore could be freely enslaved by Europeans.

Accepted Answer

Sublimus Dei (1537) declared that American Indians were rational beings with souls and condemned their enslavement, contradicting the claim that they could be freely enslaved.

Question 3

At birth, according to John Locke, the mind is an "empty cabinet," and is devoid of any inherent values, beliefs or predispositions.

Accepted Answer

John Locke's theory of tabula rasa holds that at birth, the mind is a blank slate with no innate content, including values, beliefs, or predispositions.

Question 4

Locke's ideas acquired political significance as the ideological basis of democracy and the American and French revolutions.

Accepted Answer

Locke's ideas about natural rights, limited government, and the consent of the governed were incorporated into the notions of democracy and revolution that inspired the American and French revolutions.

Question 5

Charles de Montesquieu advanced the idea that societies evolved from savagery to barbarism to civilization as their members increased their command of rational thought.

Accepted Answer

The idea that societies evolved from savagery to barbarism to civilization as their members increased their command of rational thought is most closely associated with the Scottish Enlightenment, particularly the work of Adam Ferguson and the stages theory of social development, rather than Charles de Montesquieu. Montesquieu is better known for his theory of the separation of powers in government.

Question 6

Although both Jean Baptiste Lamarck and Erasmus Darwin had advanced evolutionary theories long before Charles Darwin, such ideas became increasingly controversial and unacceptable in the first decades of the 1800s.

Accepted Answer

Lamarck and Erasmus Darwin's theories faced much criticism and opposition in the early 1800s, making them controversial and unacceptable to many. Charles Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection was not widely accepted until later in the century.

Question 7

After the Napoleonic wars, most of Europe witnessed a decline in censorship and greater freedom of speech.

Accepted Answer

After the Napoleonic Wars, Europe saw a resurgence of conservatism, leading to increased censorship and restrictions on freedom of speech as governments sought to suppress revolutionary ideas and maintain the status quo.

Question 8

The first decades of the nineteenth century witnessed a continued decline in the influence of institutionalized religion and religious belief in England and the United States.

Accepted Answer

The first decades of the nineteenth century actually saw a resurgence of religious fervor and the growth of new religious movements in both England and the United States, often referred to as the Second Great Awakening in the U.S. and the Evangelical Revival in England.

Question 9

Auguste Comte coined the term "sociology" to refer to the study of society, but only did so after a competitor adopted his term "social physics" to refer to this field.

Accepted Answer

This statement is true. Comte originally referred to the field as "social physics" but switched to the term "sociology" after a competitor, Adolphe Quetelet, adopted "social physics" as well.

Question 10

Comte's ideas were generally ignored by political and industrial leaders of his time, largely because of his extremely odd behavior.

Accepted Answer

Comte's ideas were not ignored because of his behavior; rather, they were influential in the development of sociology and positivism, although his more utopian visions and the religious aspects of his later work were less widely embraced.

Quiz 3: Anthropology Before Anthropologists