Question 1

For William Butler Yeats, Greek civilization began with the union of Zeus and Leda, and the next great civilization began with the __________________________________.

Accepted Answer

A)  Crusades 
B)  fall of Rome 
C)  rise of the Abbey Theatre in Dublin 
D)  birth of Christ 
A)  Crusades 
B)  fall of Rome 
C)  rise of the Abbey Theatre in Dublin 
D)  birth of Christ D

Question 2

_______________________________ is an example of a simile in Anne Sexton's "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs."

Accepted Answer

"as fragile as cigarette paper," "lips like Vin Du Rhone," the dwarf house was "as droll as a honeymoon cottage," the dwarfs were "wise and wattled like small czars," Snow White opened her eyes "as wide as Orphan Annie," etc.

Question 3

Yeats's line "And Agamemnon dead" refers to the tragedies in that ancient Greek family. Two other family members who were killed are ________________________ and _________________________.

Accepted Answer

Clytemnestra, Aegisthus, Iphigenia

Question 4

Clothe, Lachesis, and Atropos were the Greek ___________________________.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Clothe, Lachesis, and Atropos were the Greek...

Question 5

Ancient Greeks called on the Muses for ______________________.

Accepted Answer

A)  protection from drowning 
B)  inspiration in the creative arts 
C)  success in battle 
D)  a long and healthy life 
A)  protection from drowning 
B)  inspiration in the creative arts 
C)  success in battle 
D)  a long and healthy life

Question 6

Tennyson's Ulysses is unhappy because ______________________________________.

Accepted Answer

A)  he is no longer king 
B)  he longs for his previous life of adventure 
C)  Telemachus has handled his affairs badly 
D)  Penelope has finally left him 
A)  he is no longer king 
B)  he longs for his previous life of adventure 
C)  Telemachus has handled his affairs badly 
D)  Penelope has finally left him

Question 7

When Milton writes, "Where were ye, Nymphs…" and "What could the Muse herself that Orpheus bore . . . " what is he lamenting?

Accepted Answer

A)  Nymphs are unreliable. 
B)  Muses are powerless. 
C)  Edward King's drowning was inevitable. 
D)  He was not there to try to save his friend. 
A)  Nymphs are unreliable. 
B)  Muses are powerless. 
C)  Edward King's drowning was inevitable. 
D)  He was not there to try to save his friend.

Question 8

Lorde's goal is to empower those who metaphorically have _______.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Lorde's goal is to empower those who...

Question 9

In the fifteenth century, literary and scientific works became more accessible because of ________________________________.

Accepted Answer

A)  the invention of the printing press 
B)  the Crusades 
C)  Humanism 
D)  the Renaissance 
A)  the invention of the printing press 
B)  the Crusades 
C)  Humanism 
D)  the Renaissance

Question 10

Of the descriptions below, the one that is in Anne Sexton's but NOT the Grimms' "Snow White" is ________________________________________________________________.

Accepted Answer

A)  "At each turn there were 20 doorways and at each stood a hungry wolf" 
B)  "Bring me her heart, she said to the hunter." 
C)  "You must not open the door." 
D)  "And once more the queen dressed rags and once more Snow White opened the door." 
A)  "At each turn there were 20 doorways and at each stood a hungry wolf" 
B)  "Bring me her heart, she said to the hunter." 
C)  "You must not open the door." 
D)  "And once more the queen dressed rags and once more Snow White opened the door."

Question 11

Hallmarks of pastoral poetry do NOT include _____________________________________.

Accepted Answer

A)  peaceful, rural settings 
B)  allusions to ancient Greek and Roman mythology 
C)  idealizing domesticated livestock such as sheep and cows. 
D)  charming, stereotypical rural characters 
A)  peaceful, rural settings 
B)  allusions to ancient Greek and Roman mythology 
C)  idealizing domesticated livestock such as sheep and cows. 
D)  charming, stereotypical rural characters

Question 12

In the ancient myth, Leda is raped by ______________________.

Accepted Answer

A)  Apollo 
B)  Zeus 
C)  Hermes 
D)  a Satyr 
A)  Apollo 
B)  Zeus 
C)  Hermes 
D)  a Satyr

Question 13

Seventeenth-century masques were _____________________________________________.

Accepted Answer

A)  fantastic, artistic creations made to hide the face 
B)  theatrical performances of scenes from ancient myths 
C)  mythological plays acted out in churches and cathedrals 
D)  parades celebrating ancient Roman festivals 
A)  fantastic, artistic creations made to hide the face 
B)  theatrical performances of scenes from ancient myths 
C)  mythological plays acted out in churches and cathedrals 
D)  parades celebrating ancient Roman festivals

Question 14

Although Milton is mourning his friend Edward King, he dedicates his poem to ______________________.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Although Milton is mourning his friend Edward...

Question 15

Lorde invokes __________ deities of Western Africa in her poetry.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Lorde invokes __________ deities of Western Africa...

Question 16

"Pastor" is the Latin word for ________________________.

Accepted Answer

The answer of "Pastor" is the Latin word for ________________________....

Question 17

The major theme of Tennyson's "Ulysses" is ______________________________.

Accepted Answer

The answer of The major theme of Tennyson's "Ulysses" is...

Question 18

In "A Litany for Survival," Lorde includes _____________________ as part of the community she addresses.

Accepted Answer

A)  all men and women 
B)  all women 
C)  all African Americans 
D)  herself 
E)  her mother 
A)  all men and women 
B)  all women 
C)  all African Americans 
D)  herself 
E)  her mother

Question 19

"Renaissance" means ______________________________________.

Accepted Answer

The answer of "Renaissance" means ______________________________________....

Question 20

The ________________________ were the most decisive factor in bringing works of ancient Middle Eastern lands to Europe.

Accepted Answer

The answer of The ________________________ were the most decisive factor...

Exam 45: Poetry and Myth

For William Butler Yeats, Greek civilization began with the union of Zeus and Leda, and the next great civilization began with the __________________________________.

_______________________________ is an example of a simile in Anne Sexton's "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs."

Yeats's line "And Agamemnon dead" refers to the tragedies in that ancient Greek family. Two other family members who were killed are ________________________ and _________________________.

Clothe, Lachesis, and Atropos were the Greek ___________________________.

Ancient Greeks called on the Muses for ______________________.

Tennyson's Ulysses is unhappy because ______________________________________.

When Milton writes, "Where were ye, Nymphs…" and "What could the Muse herself that Orpheus bore . . . " what is he lamenting?

Lorde's goal is to empower those who metaphorically have _______.

In the fifteenth century, literary and scientific works became more accessible because of ________________________________.

Of the descriptions below, the one that is in Anne Sexton's but NOT the Grimms' "Snow White" is ________________________________________________________________.

Hallmarks of pastoral poetry do NOT include _____________________________________.

In the ancient myth, Leda is raped by ______________________.

Seventeenth-century masques were _____________________________________________.

Although Milton is mourning his friend Edward King, he dedicates his poem to ______________________.

Lorde invokes __________ deities of Western Africa in her poetry.

"Pastor" is the Latin word for ________________________.

The major theme of Tennyson's "Ulysses" is ______________________________.

In "A Litany for Survival," Lorde includes _____________________ as part of the community she addresses.

"Renaissance" means ______________________________________.

The ________________________ were the most decisive factor in bringing works of ancient Middle Eastern lands to Europe.

What Is Myth

Ways of Understanding Myth

Greece: Hesiod

Rome: Ovid Creation

The Bible: Genesis Creation

Mesopotamia: Enuma Elish

Icelandicnorse: Prose Edda Creation

North America: Stories From the Zuni, Hopi, and Navajo Southwest; and From the Iroquois League Northeastern Woodlands

Africa: Uganda and Nigeria

China: Nü Kwa, Kuan Yin, and Monkey

Mesoamerica: Popol Vuh

Rome: Ovid Flood

The Bible: Genesis Flood

Icelandicnorse: Prose Edda Ragnarok

Theory: Joseph Campbell, the Hero With a Thousand Faces, Dave Whomsley

Mesopotamia: the Epic of Gilgamesh

Applying Theory: a Lévi-Straussian Analysis of the Epic of Gilgamesh, G S Kirk

India: the Ramayana

Icelandicnorse: Prose Edda Heroes

Arthurian Legend: the Holy Grail, Donna Lynne Rondolone

Africa: the Mwindo Epic

Greece: Oedipus the King, Sophocles

Theory: the Structural Study of Myth, Claude Lévi-Strauss

North America: Raven

African and African-American Trickster Stories

Greece: Prometheus

Applying Theory: Different Versions of Myths

Theory: the Forest of Symbols, Victor Turner

Greece: Demeter and Persephone

Egypt: Isis and Osiris

Applying Theory: Meals in the Bible, Mary Douglas

Icelandicnorse: the Rituals of Iceland, Hr Ellis Davidson

Greece: Heracles and Dionysus

Theory: Man and His Symbols, Cg Jung

Applying Theory: How to Perform a Jungian Analysis

Theory: the Morphology of the Folktale, Vladimir Propp

Applying Theory: a Proppian Analysis of the Wizard of Oz

Germany: Grimms Household Tales

Rome: Cupid and Psyche, Apuleius

Applying Theory: Highlighting Different Aspects of the Same Tale Using Multiple Analyses

Daniel Boone: Building the Myth Around the Man, Richard Slotkin

Stagecoach and Firefly: the Journey Into the Unknown in Westerns and Science Fiction, Fred Erisman

Harry Potter: a Rankian Analysis of the Hero of Hogwarts, M Katherine Grimes

The Vampire As Hero: Tales of the Undead in a Contemporary Context, Eva M Thury

Yellow Woman: Native-American Oral Myth in a Contemporary Context, Leslie Marmon Silko

Narrative and Myth

Filters

Yeats's line "And Agamemnon dead" refers to the tragedies in that ancient Greek family. Two other family members who were killed are and _.