Humanities Module 1 Final Exam Test Latest 2025 Graded A+) Questions and Detailed Answers (Well Explained

1. What Are the Humanities? 2. The study of Humanities 3. By studying the arts from various times and places, we learn about 4. Another primary function of the Humanities is to help us learn to 5. For our purpose, we will define the Humanities as 6. consilience*. Humanities Module 1 Final Exam Test Latest 2025 Graded A+) Questions and Detailed Answers (Well Explained seeks to understand what humans believe and why, along with what we have believed in the past and even what we might believe in the future. By studying beliefs and the ways such beliefs have been expressed through the arts, for instance, we gain a better understanding of human values. think critically and creatively about the human experience. Studying the Humanities allows us to understand the past as more than just a series of events. A pattern of human interactions within a rich context of beliefs, ideals, and experiences emerge when we look closely at how literary and artistic movements evolved over time When we explore these subjects, various windows open before us, and we practice consilience*. Consilience is the art and science of exploring the overlaps of what are often considered quite different subjects, such as the science and Humanities, in search of commonalities and places of agreement. By understanding how these subjects overlap, we are able to see a broader, well-rounded picture of humanity. a study of the various ways people, in all times past and present and in all places around the world, live out the human experience. Humans have engaged in religion, philosophy, literature, music, art, language, and history to better comprehend and describe our world. other cultures—their differences as well as their similarities. word "humanities" is derived from the Latin term, humanitas, which essentially refers to humans and their culture Another way to look at the Humanities is that it is the study of human ideas Additionally, it is important to see how these different subjects influence one another 7. . Studying the Humanities can help us better understand human relationships. True or False? True Correct. By studying the Humanities, we can see how people across time responded to different challenges and events and how people interacted with one another. 8. When studying the Humanities, you should not make connections between the past and the present. True or False? This is a false statement. Studying the Humanities allows us to see the connections between past and present and imparts a sense of cultural continuity. 9. Studying the Humanities has civic benefits. True or False? True Correct. Studying the Humanities can help us become better citizens and contributors to society. 10. Chronology (from Latin chronologia, from Ancient Greek χρόνος, chronos, "time"; and -λογία, -logia) is defined as a method of taking events and putting them in the order of occurrence. In the study of the Humanities, a chronological timeline or a listing of the sequence of events allows us to see connections between cause and effect. In other words, when we are able to trace one event back to another, or to extrapolate out of one event an event which follows, we are better able to see the source of a series of events. 11. Review the timeline below to get a good sense of when each chronological period occurs. Note that this timeline illustrates general designations for periods and movements related to literature and the arts and that the dates for each one are approximate. 12. Three inventions that altered the way that we live, and the way that we go about our business, are the printing press, electricity, and the Internet. The printing press- -the printing press, while it was invented originally in the 11th century in China--a simple, moveable-type press--it didn't really come to Europe and to the Western world until 1450, when Gutenberg invented his press in Germany. Now, the printing press had a huge impact on the dissemination of information. Prior to this, the production of manuscripts was time-consuming and extremely expensive. The printing press allowed for manuscripts, such as the Bible, such as materials that pushed along the Protestant reformation, to be produced in mass numbers. It changed literacy in Europe. Before the printing press, reading was really the province of the wealthy and the educated. The press made it so that many, many more people--including the rising middle class in the Middle Ages--could read. In 1476 it came to England, and the first text that Caxton printed on his press was The Canterbury Tales, which was then printed dozens and dozens of times. There were some texts in Germany that were printed tens of thousands of times. So, the amount of material, and the access, brought about by the printing press cannot be underestimated. second, of course, is electricity--and this changed, drastically changed, the way that we live. Now, electricity is not really an invention because it has been around for a long time. As a matter of fact, in ancient Egypt they knew about electric eels and knew about charges, so really it's a bit more of a discovery than an invention, but let's say, for instance, the invention of the light bulb by Thomas Edison or alternating or direct current--this changed the way that we lived our daily lives. last one, of course, is the Internet, and like the printing press, the Internet revolutionized the way that we access knowledge. Now if we have to wait for more than twenty seconds--ten if you're impatient--to get any sort of knowledge that we want, this is frustrating. So, the Internet has one: just changed that we access knowledge in a drastic way, it has also put knowledge about anything at anybody's finger tips and made education, business, that much simpler, has brought people together all around the world instantly, and I can't think of an invention that has had bigger impact on the globalization of the world than the Internet. 13. The first text to be printed on a printing press in England was The Canterbury Tales. True or False? . True Correct. The printing press came to England in 1476, and the first text to be printed was The Canterbury Tales. 14. The impact of technology on the Humanities is an example of how chronology is important for understanding the Humanities. True or False? True Correct. Studying the Humanities chronologically is important for understanding what technologies came into play at what time. 15. Themes* are unifying ideas that are repeated or developed throughout a literary or artistic work. Regardless of the culture or society that produces them, this Humanities course will explore both certain recurring themes that cross time and cultures, and themes that are distinct and defining for a period. 16. Throughout this course, there are themes that define a period, and each creative work or sets of contexts addressed in the period are firmly anchored in a specific set of themes. This anchoring exposes. the thematic narrative that runs throughout each period. In other words, the themes provided at the beginning of each module (each period) will help tell the story of that period through the contexts and work selected to represent that period. Many periods share themes, and we can think of these themes as more "universal" in nature (you will learn more about these kinds of themes shortly) The Classical Period balance, truth/reason, democracy/republic, polytheism, humanism The Middle Ages Period (not covered in this course): religion, deference to God, crusades, pacifism, humility, feudalism, chivalry The Renaissance Period: rebirth of classicism, humanism, rationalism, scientific expansion, university system, individualism, self-fashioning The Baroque Period (not covered in this course): counter-reformation, divine right, absolutism, commonwealth, unification of the arts, world as a stage The Neoclassical Period: skepticism, rationalism, empiricism, order, deism, classicism The Romantic Period: nationalism, exoticism, revolution, heroism, passion, individualism, nature he Realist Period: Darwinism, industrialization, individualism, age of doubt you can see, there are a few themes that—while not universal, per se—occur in two or more periods. This repetition indicates that these themes affect not just a single period or generation but are powerful enough themes that they have, historically, required revisiting and, in some cases, reimagining: individualism, revolution, and classicism*. These three themes tell us something about values central to the Western world, as these three themes have endured through tumultuous change and creative innovation. 17. Each period has its own distinct set of themes, which never overlap with other periods' themes. True or False? False Correct. This statement is false. While each period has its own unique set of themes, there are some themes that overlap in multiple periods, such as individualism, revolution, and classicism. Themes consist of unifying ideas that are repeated or developed throughout a literary or artistic work. True or False? True Correct. Themes are ideas that can be recognized in one or several literary or artistic works. Universal Themes Two examples of recurring universal themes* in the Humanities include love and the hero. Although you won't see these called out specifically on the previous page, in terms of "core" themes for the periods, you will see these called out multiple times as you begin to analyze art from each period. Love and the figure of the hero, then, tell us about two shared human principles in the Western world. Love Love is one of the most powerful emotions humans can feel, so it is no surprise that it is a prominent theme in the Humanities. The ancient Greeks developed the idea of a distinction between eros*, or erotic love, and agape* or platonic love Platonic love is s Selfless love of one person for another on a spiritual level, or love of pure beauty, either aesthetic or intellectual. This profound distinction gave the formal arts a construct for expressing the duality of love (physical passion versus love of soul, lust versus spiritual desire) that nearly all cultures recognize. It opened art, literature, and theater to exploring erotic subject matter. And it lent the framework in which philosophers developed the concept of an idealized and exalted spiritual love that transcends passion. The Humanities explore other distinct forms of love that define our humanity as well: love of God, family love, romantic love, and friendship. Courtly love becomes an important theme in the Medieval Period, particularly the 12th century. The video below explores this theme of courtly romance. In America today we celebrate romantic love—we even dedicate a holiday, Valentine's Day, to it. We can find similar attitudes towards love in works from other cultures. For example, the Odyssey, the seventh-century Greek epic* tells the story of Odysseus's ten-year journey home and his wife Penelope's fidelity in his absence. At one point in the story, Odysseus refuses to become immortal and stay with the goddess Calypso. He tells Calypso that while his mortal wife can't compete with her in beauty, still he wishes to return home. But the Greeks also were suspicious of love and its irrational effects. The Greeks wrote about the god Eros, a small capricious boy, who later became known as "Cupid" by the Romans. This god, born of Aphrodite, shoots people with his arrows, causing them to be overwhelmed with an irrational, uncontrollable emotion. It is not the attributes of the other person that cause love, but rather something that happens to you. The hero is an archetype found in virtually every culture. Stories of heroes seem to be essential in all societies. The hero's journey archetype has been termed a monomyth (a phrase popularized by the scholar of mythology Joseph Campbell) because the trajectory of the hero's quest or journey is fundamentally the same everywhere. We are prone to believe in heroes and await their coming. The hero archetype satisfies a psychological need to see the individual (to see oneself) as capable of stupendous feats (physical, mental, or moral) against seemingly insurmountable and antagonistic forces. We are introduced to the archetype in childhood and through mythic stories that cultivate and reinforce our expectations for the heroic. The hero embodies two somewhat contradictory elements: someone who is larger-than-life and someone who is like each of us. We can admire the hero and enjoy hearing stories about him because he can do things we cannot: the gods favor him, and he is stronger and more clever than an ordinary man. He travels to faraway places, often faces death or even visits the underworld, wins battles against great odds, and meets exotic creatures. At the same time, the hero usually has very human emotions and struggles. In the Old Babylonian heroic poem, Gilgamesh, the king of Uruk, Gilgamesh, is two-thirds divine, but his response to his best friend's death is as self-centered as any human's. He mourns Enkidu but travels to the ends of the earth to meet someone who has been granted immortality because Gilgamesh fears his own death. The term for selfless love of one person for another on a spiritual level is . a. eros b. agape c. phileo d. None of the above agape The correct answer is b. The term for selfless love of one person for another on a spiritual level is agape. The hero is often both larger-than-life and relatably human. True or False? True Correct. The hero embodies two somewhat contradictory elements: someone who is larger-than-life and someone who is like each of us. We can admire the hero and enjoy hearing stories about him because he can do things we cannot. Humanism: The study of the creative and intellectual contributions of all human cultures. This consideration and examination began in the early Renaissance with the study of Greek and Roman civilizations, which were extolled as the pinnacle of human achievement. A second, common definition of humanism is a n ethical system that centers on humans and their values and emphasizes reason and the scientific method. Myths are traditional stories of a people or culture that serve to explain some natural phenomenon, the origin of humanity, or customs or religious rites. Humans can pass on their visions, values, and memories from generation to generation through myths. The Fall of Icarus by Marc Chagall, 1975. () some myths are universal; others are unique to a given culture. Myths offer practical and spiritual wisdom and help shape how we see the world. They also delight and entertain. Paradise by Lucas Cranach the Elder, 1536. (Public Domain) Beauty: Those qualities that give pleasure to the senses. They might be found (for example) in nature, a human face, a musical composition, a painting, or a poem. Aesthetic pleasure is that which beauty inspires in humans. End of Slide 6 Aesthetic experience is an experience of beauty that inspires a feeling of pleasure, which is its own justification. We value the experience, whether in nature or the arts, intrinsically—independently of other things. The stimulus for aesthetic experience may be visual (a full moon, a painting, a dance movement, a person's face) or auditory (a song, the wind whistling through the trees) or literary (a written narrative or verse). End of Slide 7 Archetypes are age-old models by which we comprehend human experience. These original models—for example, "the hero" or "descent into the underworld" or "scapegoat"—are transmitted from generation to generation through mythology and become part of our subconscious. End of Slide 8 archetypes include They include mythic characters, events, symbols, and buried assumptions. We rely on archetypes to organize our understanding of ourselves, of humans generally, and of the universe. End of Last Slide Those original models that help us understand our experience are called . a. canons b. aesthetics c. archetypes d. none of the above archetypes Yes, the correct answer is c. Archetypes are the original models by which we comprehend human experience. All myths are universal. True or False? False Correct. This is a false statement. Some myths are universal; others are unique to a given culture. What does studying the Humanities both chronologically and thematically allow you to see? First, studying the Humanities chronologically allows me to see the cause and effect relationship between different periods. I can trace one event or theme back to the influence of another and determine why a given period might be looking back to a previous period. From there, I can consider the significance of that period's desire to look back or revisit that event or theme. Second, studying the Humanities thematically allows me to see how some themes endure in the Western world and how some themes are unique to a period's innovation and growth. Last, studying the Humanities from both perspectives gives me a multi-dimensional viewpoint on humanism, or the study of "the creative and intellectual contributions of all human cultures." Individualism is a recurring theme in this course. How is individualism conceptualized today? In the United States, individualism, for the most part, is prized. "Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" is very much about cultivating individualism, as is the First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of speech for each individual. In American movies and TV, we see individualism play out as a core theme, where heroes/heroines and villains/villainesses alike hold on tight to their individualism in order to achieve their highest goals and aspirations. Many popular American musicians, too, are prized for their individual style and their willingness to stand out from the crowd as their own unique artist and person. Even parents are encouraged to teach their kids to explore their own senses of self more now than we have seen in the past. From the legal system to popular culture to even how children are raised, it is evident that individualism is a core value of contemporary American life. Why is the concept "humanism" central to the study of the Humanities? Since humanism covers intellectual, creative, and ethical life, addressing humanism at the heart of Humanities is central to understanding how human culture has changed (and not changed) over time. Humanism helps us take a balanced approach to studying human culture: it addresses ethical and scientific systems as much as it addresses human creative pursuits; it covers both the objective and subjective qualities of the human experience. What are some examples of myths in contemporary American culture? Saint Nick or Santa Claus is a central mythical figure in American culture. The myth of Santa Claus both entertains Americans and provides practical wisdom. As a form of entertainment, the story of Santa Claus (who deposits presents to billions of good children around the world every Christmas Eve) delights children. He is jolly, generous, and good natured. He values goodness in the world and relishes the joy he brings to children around the world. From a practical standpoint, Santa Claus also provides children with a moral: if they are very good, they will receive a visit from Santa Claus and will received much-sought-after gifts; if they are bad, Santa Claus will leave them with nothing but a lump of coal. The myth of Santa Claus serves an important cultural function as both a unifying source of joy and a teacher of wisdom (children should behave). The Humanities is defined by the major artistic and intellectual disciplines* it comprises music An artistic form of auditory expression that incorporates instruments or human voices in a structured and continuous manner. Music is "the shaped sound between silences." religion An organized system of spiritual beliefs and practices, usually offering a moral code and a worldview. Note that our definition of religion is loose and can include any system of ethics, values, and beliefs. Some argue that service and worship of God or the supernatural has to be part of any definition of religion, but there is enough variety in religious practice to make that too restrictive a definition. Religions often provide their followers a series of codified beliefs including: sacred writings or texts worship practices, including important ceremonies and rituals theology that seeks to explain the nature of God, the reasons for existence, the afterlife, etc. code of morality or religious law