World Literature Midterm

What is the central theme of “Live Oak”?

Reflection on personal history, nostalgia, and emotional memory tied to place.

What best describes the narrator of “Live Oak”?

• The narrator was, in his youth, a womanizing roughneck who wandered the country seeking pleasure

• The narrator once robbed a freight ship, killing workers in the process.

Which of the following best describes the way the woman in the "Live Oak" reacts to the narrator's revelation (to her) that he has been a murderous bandit.

She is unexpectedly attracted to this side of the narrator.

How does the narrator of "Live Oak" react to the woman's sensual acceptance of his violent past?

He kills her, suddenly conscious that she could in fact be in love with an older version of himself that he wishes to leave behind.

What is “Speed Trap Town” about?

Frustration with small-town life, systemic issues, and feeling trapped.

True or False: The narrator of "Speed Trap Town" enjoys the lack of anonymity his small community provides, as evidenced by his interaction in the grocery store.

False

What is the narrator's primary dilemma in "Speed Trap Town?"

Whether he can ethically leave his womanizing father in indefinite medical care and start a new life in a new town.

he town in the song, "Speed Trap Town" is best described as:

• Insular, given the way everybody seems to know each other

• Small, as evidenced by the fact that the narrator resentfully refers to a larger visiting school as "5A bastards."

• Insignificant, as evidenced by the fact that most people know it only as a "speed trap."

What difficult topic does “Elephant” address?

Cancer, illness, and the emotional impact on loved ones.

True or false: When the woman tells the narrator of "Elephant" that he is, "taking me [her] home," this can be best understood as a euphemism for her intention to have sex with him.

False

The relationship between the two people described in Elephant can best be understood as..

A man and woman comforting each other in the days before the woman's death.

How does Isbell convey intimacy and pain in “Elephant”?

Through personal storytelling, detailed imagery, and sparse instrumentation.

How could we best describe the narrator of "Elephant" in terms of his attitudes towards death.

He believes death is certain and brutal and undignified.

Who writes the songs “Live Oak, Speed Trap, and Elephant”?

Jason Isbell

Who were Cain and Abel?

ain was a farmer, Abel a shepherd; Cain killed Abel out of jealousy.

What was God’s promise to Abraham?

That Abraham would have many descendants, become a great nation, and all nations would be blessed through him.

Who is Esther and what is her role?

A Jewish queen of Persia who saves her people from Haman’s plot.

Who is Queen Vashti and what happens to her?

• King Xerxes's defiant wife, whose refusal to be subjected to the sexual trophy show Xerxes has in mind at his self-aggrandizing party l

• Leads to her being stripped of her crown.

How would you describe the Jewish palace servant, Mordecai?

Mordecai is confident in his personal beliefs and unafraid of the material superiority of the Persian empire he serves.

What causes the palace official, Haman, to become consumed with genocidal rage towards the Jewish people?

Haman becomes incensed when the Hebrew servant Mordecai refuses to kneel before him and decides to eliminate all Hebrews in order to cleanse Persia of these non-assimilating foreigners.

Upon learning about Haman plan what does Esther do?

Esther is initially reticent to get involved, afraid of losing her newly powerful position. It is only after hearing the pleas of Mordecai that she chooses to leverage her position on behalf of her people.

True or false: Haman's plan to hang Mordecai and eliminate the Jews is carried out despite Esther's pleas

False

How do the Jewish people scattered about the provinces of Persia respond to the destruction of Haman?

By killing, but not plundering, their enemies throughout the provinces.

What is the significance of Esther’s courage?

Demonstrates faith, bravery, and the power of advocacy within God’s plan.

What key event is described in Luke 2?

The birth of Jesus in Bethlehem and the shepherds’ visit.

How does John 1 describe Jesus?

As the Word (Logos), present at creation, and the source of life and light.

Name a key teaching from Matthew 5–7

The Beatitudes, teachings on love, forgiveness, and righteousness.

What parables are included in Luke 15?

The Lost Sheep, the Lost Coin, and the Prodigal Son, emphasizing God’s forgiveness.

What events occur in Matthew 27–28?

The crucifixion, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.

rue or False: Jesus declares public displays of prayer a righteous way to display good behavior in front of people who don't believe in God.

False

How does Jesus defend himself when brought before the authorities on charges of civil disruption and blasphemy?

He simply refuses to raise a defense of himself at all.

What all does the man named Simeon prophesy about the baby Jesus when he meets him in a temple?

• That Jesus will be a light for God's revelation to Gentiles (or non-Jewish people).

• That Jesus will be "the glory" of the Jewish people.

True or False: in the parable of the wayward son from Luke 15, Jesus declares the moral superiority of the consistently obedient over those who struggle to maintain an excellent standard of behavior.

False

True or False: Jesus overwrote ancient moral principles like, "do not murder," or "do not commit adultery," by emphasizing forgiveness.

False

What is Dante’s situation at the start of Canto I?

He is lost in a dark wood, representing sin and confusion in life.

What three beasts block Dante’s path?

The leopard (fraud), the lion (violence), and the she-wolf (incontinence)

Why does Dante hesitate to enter Hell?

He feels unworthy and fears the dangers ahead.

Who offers Dante guidance and encouragement?

Virgil, representing reason.

What is the inscription on the gate of Hell?

“Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.”

Who are some notable sinners Dante encounters in these cantos?

The opportunists, the lustful (e.g., Francesca and Paolo).

What is a major theme in these early cantos?

Justice, sin, and the consequences of moral failings.

Which of the following offers the best interpretation of the lines from Rumi below:

This drunkenness began in some other tavern.

When I get back around to that place,

I'll be completely sober.

The author is comparing his present, earthly yet spiritual state to inebriation and longing for return to God/heaven/a place of spiritual fulfillment.

Based upon his words in, "Drunks Fear the Police," which of the following phrases accurately describe Rumi's beliefs about the relationship between police and citizenry.

• He believes that citizens "use" both police and troublemakers.

• He believes troublemakers and police may both behave recklessly and destructively.

• He believes that citizens sometimes use police as an instrument of oppression against other people.

Based upon your reading of The Guest House, how do you think Rumi understood unpleasant experiences?

As learning opportunities that allow human beings to grow.

What is Dante’s ultimate vision at the center of Hell?

Satan frozen in the lake at the center of the Earth, symbolizing ultimate treachery

How does Dante and Virgil escape Hell?

By climbing down Satan’s body and passing through the center of the Earth, emerging to see the stars.

What is the overarching lesson of Inferno’s conclusion?

Sin leads to suffering, divine justice prevails, and moral clarity can guide the soul toward redemption.

(T or F): Dante Alighieri was a citizen of Florence, Italy who wrote his epic three-part Divine Comedy in a three-line rhyme scheme called terza rima in the early 1500s.

False. Wrote in early 1300s

(T or F) Inferno is one of the four parts of the Divine Comedy, in which Dante is led on tours of Hell, Earth, Purgatory, and Paradise in order to recover his sense of righteousness and purpose.

False. Only three parts Hell, Purgatory and Paradise

Who sends Dante guides to help walk him through his journey?

Beatrice, Dante's childhood love

Who guides Dante through hell?

Virigil

What do you think “I went astray

from the straight road” means?

When Dante says that he "went astray from the straight road," he is evoking a sense that he has lost touch with his faith in God, and his sense of right and wrong.

What is the organizing principle of Dante’s hell?

Concept of contrapasso - the idea that the punishment of each sinner relfects, mirrrors, or symbolically fits the nature and gravity of their sin

How do the punishments work?

Each sinner’s punishment matches their sin

“Midway upon the journey of our life

I found myself within a forest dark

For the straightforward pathway had been lose,”

What does this beginning of Canto I mean?

He had fallen off his path

What is the big plot point to take away from it?

Why was Virgil in Hell?

Born before Jesus

What does sin mean in Dante?

A way to live that does not help your community thrive

Giving into temptation

Why does Dante put Aristotle, Homer and even some Muslims?

• They are depraved of salvation either lived before Christ or outside the Christain faith

How do the punishments work?

“Law of symbolic retribution” It fits the sin of what they did

“ I am the way into the city of woe

I am the way to a forsaken people

I am the way into eternal sorrow,”

“Abandon all hope ye who enter here”

How did you understand the prescription?

Why does Dante say “what is the meaning of his harsh/cruel intentions,”?

Where does intellect leave them in Hell?

What does the opportunists want from switching sides?

You just want power.

'“Now the choir of anguish, like a wound strikes through the tortured air. Now I have come to Hell’s full lamentation, sound beyond sound,” What does this mean?

Potentially physical pressure on the cranial

Who are Francesca and Paolo?

Paolo was her brother-in-law.

“O living creature (animated being or non-plant), gracious, kind, and good,

going this pilgrimage through the sick night,

visiting us who stained the earth with blood,”

What does this mean?

Francesca is very selfish and by using flattering Dante would enjoy her. (“visiting us”)

Francesca and Paolo were murdered while having sex by her husband.

Love, which permits no loved one not to love,

Love can always be said “No,”

Dur

What is Don Quixote meant to be satire of?

The Christianity and chivalry that were both contradicting and

What were ancient characters like before Don Quixote?

Generally straight-forward

What is Humanism?

Individual & social potential

What did Cervantes mean by “like become like” in the prologue?

Since Cervantes wrote it and the book is basically his kin no one will like it since no one likes him. 

What motivates Don Quixote once he's on the road of his knightly quest?

The thought of literary infamy that he will achieve once his quests are complete and his deeds are recorded as chivalrous tales.

Why wasn't Don Quixote initially recognized as an important work of literature during the waning days of the Spanish colonial empire?

Its mixing of literary genres meant it didn't fit into the clearly-defined categories of the period, and many were unsure what to make of a piece of serious literature hidden beneath a layer of comic action and mockery.

True or false: Don Quixote loses his sanity by reading so much that he ignores the need to sleep?

True

True or false: Douglass portrays slaves as arguing among themselves as to whose master was greatest (kindest, wealthiest)?

true

How was Douglass’ Narrative received when it was first published?

It was a best seller which sparked discussion across the country

To what does Douglass compare the singing of slaves in chapter two? What does he argue that it signifies?

He compares it to the desperate song of a man stuck alone on a desolate island, arguing that it signifies the escaping sorrows of an aching, trapped heart

Which of the following quotes about liberty and equality can be accurately attributed to Douglass?

Right is of no sex; truth is of no color

Why does Douglass choose to withhold from his narrative the exact details about his method of escape?

He believes that doing so will endanger those who helped him and may cut off further opportunities for those still enslaved

What were Douglass's thoughts about American Christianity?

• Devout Christian

• He hated the hypocrisy of American Christianity

• Believed American Christianity designed to uphold the status quo of white supremacy

• He believed America Christianity constituted “horrible deception, a great fraud, and a gross lie”

• Believed the theft, murder, and adultery committed by slaveholders disqualified them from claiming true Christianity

• Believed that the brutal brand of American Christianity that had developed in colonial America

How do the 'Christian' slave-owners respond to Douglass' attempt at starting a Sabbath school where slaves could learn to read scripture together?

They violently put an end to these meetings despite the religious nature of the gatherings

Why does Douglass believe masters encouraged drunkenness and hedonism among slaves during holidays?

He believes masters used holidays as an opportunity to "show favor" by encouraging slaves to completely debase themselves in depravity in order to keep morale high, provide an avenue for slaves to burn off excess rebellious energy, and stifle any spirit of insurrection. Likewise,  this is why masters frowned on slaves who used their free time industriously

Which of the following does Douglass describe as a "turning point" in his career as a slave?

The two hour battle he had with Covey in order to resist an unwarranted beating

True or false, Douglass disagreed with many proponents of the underground railroad, arguing that their public defiance of slavery did nothing to enlighten slaves as far as how to escape, but did enlighten masters to the need to be more watchful, reducing opportunities for slaves to runaway

True

Which of the following observations does Douglass make about his master, Mr. Covey?

Covey leveraged his reputation as a religious man to bolster his reputation as a ‘slave-breaker’

In Douglass's experience, why did white carpenters refuse to work with black carpenters in Baltimore?

They argued that if black freemen were allowed to practice trades, they would take jobs from poor white men, which would eventually result in black people 'taking the country’

In criticizing American Christianity, which of the following statements of Jesus did Douglass employ?

Douglass quotes Matthew 23, where Jesus says that the Pharisees love to store up power for themselves, while oppressing others. He compares them to white-washed tombs, saying they clean the outside of a glass, but leave the inside filthy.

Which of the following statements would the narrator of "The Tyger" probably endorse?

• Any piece of creation reveals truth about its creator

• Tigers are beautiful

• Tigers are horrifying in their capacity to destroy other living beings

  • Any deity that can make something horrifying to humans must also contains aspects that are horrifying to humans

    • Divinity is inscrutable and hopelessly confusing from the perspectives of a human brain

Which statements below are true of William Blake's Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience?

• Some poem titles appear as both Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience

• Songs of Experience describe society through the nuanced lens of adulthood

• Songs of Innocence view society from the idyllic lens of childhood

Which of the following most accurately describes Blake's use of language?

Blake uses relatively simple, everyday language to communicate simple, but counter-intuitive and profoundly spiritual principles

Which of the following best explains the difference in perspective between Innocence and Experience when it comes to the small chimney sweep?

The innocent young chimney sweep hints at but does not seem to fully realize the injustice of his situation-- that of being sold into work that will kill him-- and concludes that all should tend to their duty with cheerfulness, while the poem of experience reveals more clearly the wrongness of a society that can sell its children into such labor while going to praise a 'just' God

Which of the following best describes William Blake?

A radically counter-cultural poet who experienced mystical visions and never gained fame for his poetry while alive

Which of the following best describes the poetic construction of, "The Tyger?"

It consists of a series of driving, rhymed questions, which mimic the rhythms and propulsive beat of a creator beating on an anvil0