Deck 33: The Fin De Siècle: Toward the Modern

Question 1

European audiences found the character Nora in Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House scandalous because she

A) left her husband and children.
B) cheated on her husband.
C) preferred not to marry.
D) murdered her abusive husband.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Fin de siècle literally means

A) "end of the century."
B) "beginning of the cycle."
C) "period of hope."
D) "time of change."

Answer 2

A

Question 3

The Eiffel Tower was unique for its time,because it was

A) the first structure built entirely of wrought iron.
B) the only exposition building to house a restaurant.
C) twice the height of any other building in the world.
D) the first building in the world to have electricity.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Art Nouveau is characterized by

A) abstract geometric patterns.
B) flowing designs from nature.
C) vibrant color applied randomly.
D) simple medieval designs.

Question 5

In Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House,for Nora,the doll's house symbolizes

A) a happy marriage.
B) elevation from poverty.
C) a restricted life.
D) child-like nature.

Question 6

Paris's Exposition Universelle of 1889 marked the

A) coronation of Napoleon I as emperor.
B) end of the French-Prussian War.
C) first U.S. presidential election.
D) beginning of the French Revolution.

Question 7

Some French people complained about the Eiffel Tower for

A) fear that it would collapse.
B) not thoroughly incorporating the principles of Art Nouveau.
C) not including office space.
D) violating Paris's beauty

Question 8

Georges Seurat preferred to paint using tiny dots of color called pointilles to

A) add movement and depth to his figures.
B) convey emotions through color combinations.
C) compensate for the subtractive process of mixing.
D) exaggerate the rigidity of the figures he portrayed.

Question 9

Louis Comfort Tiffany created his Art Nouveau stained glass by

A) adding ground gemstones to the molten glass.
B) dusting glass with gold and silver powder.
C) mixing different colors of glass together while hot.
D) placing small dots of different colors very near each other.

Question 10

Especially popular in the Palace of Machines were the inventions of

A) Alexander Graham Bell.
B) Thomas Edison.
C) Karl Benz.
D) Nikola Tesla.

Question 11

By the end of the century,the Eiffel Tower came to symbolize

A) rebellion.
B) modernity.
C) beauty.
D) tradition.

Question 12

Vincent van Gogh was foremost concerned with

A) investigating the scientific properties of color.
B) observing how light interacts with surfaces.
C) critiquing European society.
D) discovering a universal harmony.

Question 13

Stéphane Mallarmé based his poem "L'Aprés-midi d'un faune" on

A) a biblical story.
B) the life of Loïe Fuller.
C) a myth.
D) his own life.

Question 14

In Still Life with Plaster Cast,Paul Cézanne's use of two viewpoints seems to suggest his view that

A) a painting is best created while moving about.
B) perspective can be symbolic, charged with feelings.
C) people do not view the world from a single point of view.
D) the human eye can be tricked into focusing on certain details.

Question 15

In 1891,Paul Gauguin left France for Tahiti to avoid

A) being arrested.
B) living under European capitalism.
C) being entangled with the Impressionists.
D) being criticized in the press.

Question 16

The Symbolists presented the human experience by

A) describing the reality of peoples' behavior
B) suggesting instead of quantifying meaning.
C) using simple, ordinary themes and motifs
D) relating everyday life to biblical life.

Question 17

Chromatic scale use

A) all of the black and white keys.
B) only white keys.
C) only black keys.
D) mostly black keys.

Question 18

Which artist tried to incorporate Ogden N.Rood's theories Modern Chromatics?

A) Paul Cézanne
B) Gustav Klimt
C) Auguste Rodin
D) Georges Seurat

Question 19

The Society of Men of Letters refused to accept Auguste Rodin's Monument to Balzac for

A) being too large for the designated site.
B) portraying Balzac erotically.
C) being cast in bronze, an expensive material.
D) not being a realistic portrayal.

Question 20

Auguste Rodin's The Kiss was considered too scandalous for U.S.public display,because

A) both the man and the woman are portrayed nude.
B) it celebrates an adulterous relationship.
C) the woman is an active participant in the kiss.
D) the figures' faces are concealed.

Question 21

List and define in depth two beliefs of Friedrich Nietzsche.

Question 22

Friedrich Nietzsche rejected organized religion for

A) subjecting humanity to slave morality.
B) conforming to moral rules.
C) killing God.
D) suppressing man's Dionysian tendencies.

Question 23

In 1871,Charles Darwin published The Descent of Man to

A) prove inherent distinctions among the human races.
B) show modern man's moral deterioration.
C) offer an ethical viewpoint of man's development.
D) advocate selective breeding in humans.

Question 24

Compare Nora in Ibsen's A Doll's House to the female in Rodin's The Kiss,explaining why audiences found both females to be scandalous.

Question 25

In his Symphony No.1,Gustav Mahler created a jarring sense of conflict and tension by

A) using brass instruments only.
B) mixing classical and folk music.
C) ending each movement abruptly.
D) ignoring the principles of tonality.

Question 26

Identifying at least two artists as examples,explain the effect on their art of the Symbolists' need to retire from society in order to create works.

Question 27

Social Darwinism supposedly explained

A) altruistic behavior.
B) capitalistic tendencies.
C) moral relativity.
D) European superiority.

Question 28

Using specific details to support your response,describe and explain the perspectival technique of Paul Cézanne's Still Life with Plaster Cast.

Question 29

Southern Africans submitted themselves to the prison-like conditions of working in the diamond mines to

A) escape the poverty of their tribes.
B) earn money to buy Western weapons.
C) smuggle out some of the diamonds they found.
D) avoid being enslaved by warring tribes.

Question 30

Which work was originally titled Despair?

A) Henri Marie Raymond de Toulouse-Lautrec's At the Moulin Rouge
B) Vincent van Gogh's Night Café
C) Edvard Munch's The Scream
D) Giorgio de Chirico's The Child's Brain

Question 31

Identify and explain at least two reasons for Paris's position as the fin de siècle's center for artistic and literary change.

Question 32

Sigmund Freud placed a great deal of emphasis on interpreting dreams,believing them to

A) reveal suppressed desires.
B) be more logical than reality.
C) foretell the future.
D) indicate both mental and non-mental illness.

Question 33

All of the following are characteristics of Symbolism EXCEPT

A) revolt against reason.
B) ignorance of subjective experience.
C) return to spirituality.
D) attempt to create truth.

Question 34

At the beginning of the twentieth century,Western powers vied to dominate Africa in an effort to

A) control the natural resources and trade routes.
B) continue "civilizing" the natives through Christianity.
C) import cheap labor for their Caribbean plantations.
D) establish colonies for their overpopulated countries.

Question 35

Which twentieth-century leader justified his actions by misconstruing Friedrich Nietzsche's ideas?

A) Winston Churchill
B) Franklin D. Roosevelt
C) Richard Nixon
D) Adolph Hitler

Question 36

In Heart of Darkness,Joseph Conrad aims to show the

A) brutality of Africans.
B) dehumanizing effects of colonialism.
C) paradox of being both a writer and a colonialist.
D) dangers of working in a diamond mine.

Question 37

Explain the innovations Claude Debussy used in his Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune (The Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun)to suggest the presence of meaning in order to express the inexpressible.

Question 38

List and define three characteristics of the Art Nouveau movement,giving examples of each.

Question 39

Describe Auguste Rodin's research for his Monument to Balzac,and analyze his reasons for presenting Balzac in a non-realistic manner.

Question 40

Define "pointillism," and explain Georges Seurat's use of it to reflect and to create mood.

Question 41

List and describe three ways the European colonialism of Africa affected the African people.

Question 42

Using specific details to support your response,describe and explain the meaning of Edvard Munch's The Scream.

Question 43

Define "social Darwinism," and then summarize Darwin's response to it as presented in his The Descent of Man.