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HUMA 101, Mid-Term Essay Exam, due October 22, midnight
Dr Tatiana Sizonenko
NAME: __________________________________________ SECTION#:______________
**The exam MUST be submitted in a word document (.doc. or .docx). Google docs do not
upload, or Notes, or other word processors, or tablets. Make sure to attach the file by
clicking on the “Browse my computer Button” Remember to hit submit when you are
done. This is a take-home essay exam. No late exams will be accepted.
Part I. Short Answers. Word- process about a 250 word response (1 page) to each of the
questions below. Use MLA citation mechanics for any information that you quote or paraphrase
from Benton and Diyanni, and please put the URL of any website you used. Each answer is 10
points. 30 points total for this section.
1)
Consider the metaphor operating in Plato’s Parable of the Cave. Are we living like we
have blinders on, perceiving only a distorted reality? If so, how can we become enlightened?
Again, give examples to illustrate how/why this is the case and what someone did about it. As
such, also propose some public/historical figure to fit the role of the enlightened martyr
suggested at the end of the video. Please include 3-4 short quotations from the reading The
Allegory of the Cave attributed to Plato to help you develop your response.
2)
Pick one of these three celebrated maxims and take a position on it. Explain what you
think the expression means and put it into practice, giving examples from your own life, lives of
friends or acquaintances, or even a public figure if you prefer. Obviously don’t discuss anything
that’s too personal or uncomfortable. The idea is to express your understanding of the idea, as
you see it, and demonstrate how it might work in real life.
❖ Protagoras: Man is the measure of all things.
❖ Heraclitus the Obscure: It is not possible to step in the same river twice.
❖ Socrates: The unexamined life is not worth living.
3)
Take a virtual tour of the Lascaux Cave paintings by typing Lascaux Cave Paintings
virtual tour in a google search. This is available in youtube or vimeo:
https://vimeo.com/40849516 . In your response explain what you saw and speculate about the
working conditions of the artist. What insights might you have about the paintings or the culture
that produced them? You may use direct quotation from Sayre and or cite information from
Sister Wendy’s Story of Painting, Early Art. to develop your answer.
Part II: Essays. Choose two of the three essay prompts below and write a two- to three-page,
double-spaced essay for each prompt. Whichever prompts you choose, include a minimum of 3-5
short quotations and 1, but no more than 1, block quotation per essay to support your points. Use
standard MLA format for all citations. Although you are not required to, you may reference
works outside of the course readings to meet the quotation requirement for each essay. Each
essay is 20 points. Total 40 points for this section.
PROMPT #1) From our textbook—Discovering the Humanities by H. Sayre—choose two to six
works of art from two, but no more than two, different cultures (Sumerian, Akkadian, Babylonian,
Hebrew, Egyptian, Aegean, and Greek). Analyze these images in terms of who or what is being
depicted. Using these works of art, discuss the similarities and differences in the values of the two
cultures represented by them. You may want to (but are not required to) consider questions such as:
HUMA 101, Mid-Term Essay Exam, due October 22, midnight
Dr Tatiana Sizonenko
❖
❖
❖
❖
❖
❖
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Who or what is depicted in these works?
When and from where did they originate?
How did they function in original settings/locations?
What religious themes are apparent in these works of art?
Are there political themes apparent in them?
What historical factors have contributed to the development of these works?
What similarities and differences are there between these works?
PROMPT #2) Evaluate the similarities and differences between the heroes Gilgamesh and Achilles.
How are they alike or different in representing the idea of an “epic hero”? What do their actions say
about the values of the cultures they represent? Finally, discuss which of these two you believe best
represents our own modern understanding of a “hero” and the heroic ideal. You may want to (but are
not required to) consider questions such as:
❖ What motivates each of the two heroes?
❖ What are the consequences of their actions?
❖ Do you think the two distinct cultures they represent would define a “hero” in the same way?
Why or why not?
❖ What figures in our modern world are similar to Gilgamesh?
❖ What figures in our modern world are similar to Achilles?
PROMPT #3) Write your essay in response to the filmed version of the play Oedipus Rex (dir.
Tyrone Guthrie, 1957). This filmed version of the play attempts to recreate the way it might have
been rendered in Classical Greece — the exaggerated performances, the use of theatrical masks,
the role of the choragos (chorus), and the brief musical interlude near the end. Discuss how does
Sophocles problematize the role of divine influence and the limits of human freewill in the play.
You may want to start with a summary of the plot by answering these questions:
❖ How does Oedipus ascend to the throne of Thebes, and what happens at the
crossroads where three roads meet?
❖ What crimes does Teiresias know Oedipus is guilty of, and how does the king
respond?
❖ What events lead up to his final exile?
❖ Next, consider these analysis/interpretation questions:
❖ In practical and philosophical terms, what is Oedipus trying to do by fleeing
Corinth?
❖ How do the various plot details model irony? Give at least two examples.
❖ What lesson(s) would a Greek audience have drawn from the story?
❖ What do you think of the filmed performance of the play?
HUMA 101, Mid-Term Essay Exam, due October 22, midnight
Dr Tatiana Sizonenko
Rubrics for essays:
_______ Citations and Style (5 points)—Does the author use proper MLA format for all
citations? Do the essays include a total of 3-5 short quotations and 1
block quotation to support its main points.
_______ Introduction & Thesis (5 points)— Is the main point of each essay clear, interesting,
original, and/or argumentative? Does the introduction as a whole serve as
a clear and engaging invitation to explore the material and/or the
argument?
_______ Paragraphs (5 points)
_______ (3 points) Topic Sentences & Organization—Are the paragraphs clear in their
subject, organization, function, and relationship to the thesis?
_______ (2 points) Evidence and Analysis—Does the author provide factual and wellexplained evidence and/or data in support of the central argument or idea of the
essay?
_______ Focus and Clarity (5 points)—Does each essay clearly address all significant aspects
of the essay prompt?
_______ Neatness and Grammar (5 points)—Is each essay free of careless grammar and/or
spelling errors?
Part 1 Total:_______________________/30 points
Part 2: Essay 1 total: _______________ /30 points
Part 2: Essay 2 total: _______________ /30 points
…
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