Question 1

The only eastern European nation to maintain political democracy throughout the 1930s was

Accepted Answer

Czechoslovakia was the only Eastern European country to maintain a political democracy throughout the 1930s, while other nations in the region succumbed to authoritarian or totalitarian regimes.

Question 2

Among the social policies of the Stalinist era in the Soviet Union was all of the following EXCEPT

Accepted Answer

While all of the other options were policies implemented in the Stalinist era, there was actually a marked increase in higher education during this time. Stalin believed that education was crucial to building a strong socialist state and so he made efforts to expand access to education at all levels.

Question 3

Culture in Nazi Germany centered around

Accepted Answer

Nazi Germany's culture was heavily focused on promoting and glorifying the concept of the Aryan race. This meant that art and culture emphasized strong, heroic Aryans, often depicted in realistic and sentimental scenes, which were considered to be typical of petty-bourgeois tastes.

Question 4

Nazi ideas about appropriate work for women encouraged them to pursue occupations in

Accepted Answer

Nazi ideology promoted traditional gender roles, encouraging women to focus on family, motherhood, and social work, which was seen as an extension of their nurturing role.

Question 5

The Dada movement in art was known for all of the following EXCEPT

Accepted Answer

The Dada movement was actually known for rejecting traditional notions of purpose and ambition in art and life, instead valuing randomness and nonsensical acts. Therefore, choice B is the only one that does not accurately describe the Dada movement.

Question 6

Walter Gropius was best known for his

Accepted Answer

Walter Gropius was a German architect and founder of the Bauhaus school. He is best known for promoting the idea of functionalism in architecture, which emphasized the practicality and simplicity of design. His designs were influenced by the Modernist movement and were often characterized by the use of industrial materials and a focus on functionality over ornamentation.

Question 7

The collectivization of agriculture under Stalin was characterized by

Accepted Answer

The collectivization of agriculture under Stalin was characterized by widespread famine, as millions of peasants were either forced to join collectives or faced severe punishment. The forced collectivization disrupted traditional farming practices and resulted in a decline in agricultural production, leading to famine and starvation in the countryside.

Question 8

The physicist Walter Heisenberg was most noted for

Accepted Answer

Heisenberg is most noted for proposing the uncertainty principle, which states that the position and momentum of a particle cannot be precisely known at the same time. This principle was a significant contribution to the field of quantum mechanics.

(Note: Option B is incorrect since Heisenberg was not part of the team that split the atom. Option C is also incorrect as Heisenberg's work actually challenged the predictability of classical physics. While Heisenberg did work on the development of the atomic bomb, this was not his most notable contribution to physics. Finally, option E is incorrect as Heisenberg did not correct Einstein's errors but rather developed his own ideas in the field of quantum mechanics.)

Question 9

Artistic and intellectual trends in the interwar years reflected

Accepted Answer

The horrors of World War I led many artists and intellectuals to become disillusioned with Western Civilization and traditional values, resulting in a rejection of pre-war artistic and intellectual movements and a search for new forms of expression. This is evident in the emergence of new art movements such as Surrealism and Expressionism.

Question 10

James Joyce's famous novel featuring "stream-of-consciousness" was

Accepted Answer

Ulysses is widely considered as one of the most significant literary works of the 20th century and is known for its use of the "stream-of-consciousness" narrative technique, which presents a character's thoughts and feelings in a continuous flow without the traditional structure of chapters and sections. The novel follows the events of one day in the life of three central characters in Dublin, Ireland, and the internal experiences and memories that arise as a result.

Question 11

The film Triumph of the Will, which serves as an example of the propaganda potential of film, is a product of

Accepted Answer

Triumph of the Will is a Nazi propaganda film made by German filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl, who was commissioned by German dictator Adolf Hitler to create a film showcasing the Nazi Party's 1934 Nuremberg Rally.

Question 12

In 1936 Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, and the Soviet Union signed a Nonintervention Agreement that declared they would not get involved in the civil war that had erupted in

Accepted Answer

The civil war that erupted in 1936 and involved the Nationalist forces of General Francisco Franco and the Republican government was in Spain. The Nonintervention Agreement was signed by Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, and the Soviet Union, and aimed to prohibit the supply of arms, munitions, and soldiers to either side of the conflict. However, the agreement was flouted by several countries, including Germany and Italy, who provided military aid to the Nationalist forces.

Question 13

Hitler's anti-Semitic policies in the 1930s

Accepted Answer

Hitler's anti-Semitic policies in the 1930s reached their most violent phase during Kristallnacht, also known as the Night of Broken Glass. On November 9-10, 1938, Nazi stormtroopers and German civilians destroyed Jewish homes, businesses, and synagogues, killing at least 91 Jews and arresting around 30,000. This event marked a significant escalation of anti-Semitic violence and marked the beginning of the Holocaust.

Question 14

The dominant form of government in Eastern Europe in the 1920s and 1930s was

Accepted Answer

Authoritarianism was the dominant form of government in Eastern Europe in the 1920s and 1930s. Many countries in the region were ruled by authoritarian leaders who suppressed political opposition and controlled the media, including Hungary under Miklos Horthy, Romania under Carol II, and Poland under Józef Piłsudski. This was particularly true in the aftermath of World War I, when many Eastern European countries were grappling with nationalist tensions and economic instability.

Question 15

"Strength through Joy"

Accepted Answer

Strength through Joy was a program set up by the Nazi government to monitor and control workers' leisure time. The program offered workers vacation package tours, but the true purpose was to promote Nazi ideology and discourage dissent. The program was successful in its goal of homogenizing leisure time, but the actual experiences of the vacationers often fell short of expectations.

Question 16

The Stalinist era in the 1930s witnessed

Accepted Answer

The Stalinist era in the 1930s witnessed the arrest and imprisonment of millions of ordinary citizens in forced labor camps. This was part of Stalin's purges to eliminate those he saw as enemies of the state. There was also a decline in industrialization and a shift towards the collectivization of agriculture. Real wages and social conditions for the industrial labor force did not improve dramatically, and there was not an abundance of permissive social legislation. While there was an activist foreign and military policy, it was not solely focused on immediately making Eastern Europe a satellite region to the Soviet Union.

Question 17

Lenin's New Economic Policy was designed to

Accepted Answer

Lenin's New Economic Policy (NEP) was introduced to revive the economy by allowing some private enterprise and was particularly aimed at increasing the production of food and consumer goods.

Question 18

All of the following concepts were central to the psychological theories of Carl Jung EXCEPT

Accepted Answer

The uncertainty principle is a concept from quantum mechanics and is not part of Carl Jung's psychological theories. The other choices are all key concepts in his theories.

Question 19

Joseph Stalin's emergence as leader of the Communist party was aided by

Accepted Answer

Stalin's position as general secretary of the Bolshevik party gave him control over appointments, which he used to place his supporters in key positions and consolidate his power within the party. This allowed him to outmaneuver his rivals and emerge as the undisputed leader of the Communist Party. Lenin actually warned against Stalin's consolidation of power before his death, and Trotsky and the Left opposed Stalin. The support of the Soviet military was not a significant factor in Stalin's rise to power.

Question 20

The most famous of the Surrealistic painters was

Accepted Answer

The Surrealist movement was heavily influenced by Salvador Dali and his unique style which blended realistic and dreamlike elements. His most famous painting, "The Persistence of Memory," has become an icon of the Surrealist movement. While other artists like Picasso were associated with the movement, Dali remains the most famous and recognized Surrealist painter.

Quiz 26: The Futile Search for Stability: Europe Between the Wars 1919-1939