Deck 12: Person As Meaning-Maker

Question 1

Becker notes that our primary repressions are about

A) consciousness of death.
B) the weaning stage.
C) the Oedipus complex.
D) our lack of self-actualization.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Existential angst is

A) worrying about things like grades or the car payment.
B) dreading the threat of nothingness or "not being."
C) stress about relationships with others.
D) anxiety about conscious centeredness.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Existentialists balance the warmth and optimism of humanism with

A) a realistic understanding of defense mechanisms.
B) an acknowledgment of evil, tragedy, and death.
C) fatalistic futurism.
D) a belief in God who abhors evil.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

The successful artist is the quintessential model of "good mental health," whereas the neurotic is seen as the

A) failed artist.
B) emblem of sickness.
C) conflicted individual.
D) None of the above

Question 5

What did Becker argue is the compelling force behind all human experience?

A) Terror of death
B) Sexual libido
C) Mating rituals
D) Aggression

Question 6

The process by which ordinary people divide up reality into manageable portions is termed

A) expression.
B) simplification.
C) partialization.
D) reductionism.

Question 7

Becker finds which of the following to be the synthesis of the ultimate dialectic: life vs. death?

A) Hope
B) Love
C) Art
D) Religion

Question 8

Existentialists address which of the following types of concerns?

A) Ultimate concerns
B) Life concerns
C) Death concerns
D) All of the above

Question 9

Existentialists propose which level of analysis?

A) Umwelt
B) Eigenwelt
C) Mitwelt
D) All of the above

Question 10

Whereas Freud saw libido as the driving force in life, and Becker believed fear of dying was the essential motivating force, according to Rollo May, is the central organizing force.

A) consciousness of self
B) centeredness
C) intentionality
D) None of the above

Question 11

Hegelian dialects can be summarized as

A) thesis vs. anti-thesis leads to synthesis at a higher level.
B) Umwelt melded with the Eigenwelt.
C) the mind/body separation.
D) a sexual tension to great to withstand.

Question 12

Ontology can be described as the study of

A) aggression expressed symptoms.
B) inner revelation.
C) ultimate concerns.
D) the synthesis of love and hate.

Question 13

Dialectical thinking does which of the following to produce synthesis?

A) It preserves elements of truth found in both the thesis and antithesis.
B) It transcends and sublimates the conflict into a higher truth.
C) It cancels the conflict.
D) All of the above

Question 14

Umwelt is a term used by Existentialists to refer to

A) our biological existence as mammals.
B) our subjective introspective world.
C) the world of social relationships.
D) the myth of happiness.

Question 15

What is the main issue addressed by the Existentialists?

A) Life, death, meaning, and other ultimate concerns of humans
B) Behavior as a symptom of innate evil
C) Life goals as expressions of innate goodness
D) None of the above

Question 16

Becker's findings of life vs. death in art were motivated by whose works?

A) Rank
B) May
C) Freud
D) Allport

Question 17

Consciousness of self is primarily

A) self doubt when faced with tough choices.
B) our ability as humans to observe ourselves as an outsider would.
C) understanding our past so that we know who we are.
D) knowing our cultural history so that we understand our place in society.

Question 18

According to , whenever we work out (run 10 kilometers, meet a friend for a game of tennis, etc), we are hoping to shove death into the distance a bit.

A) May
B) Ellis
C) Rank
D) Becker

Question 19

The study of the ultimate reality - the being aspect of a human being - is called

A) Etiology.
B) Theology.
C) Psychology.
D) Ontology.

Question 20

While Freud claimed the Oedipal triangle was an illustration of incestual sex, guilt, and intrafamilial conflict, Becker interprets it as

A) an existential struggle.
B) a need to be close to someone.
C) a humanistic battle.
D) a learned behavior.

Question 21

May used many dialectical opposites (such as agape vs. apathy, or freedom vs. destiny) in his theory, whereas Becker used only one, which is

A) Life vs. Death.
B) Sex vs. Eros.
C) Love vs. Will.
D) None of the above

Question 22

Which recurring theme, according to Existentialists, asserts that human beings are conscious, choosing, self-aware subjects, NOT things to be manipulated, classified, or otherwise "pigeon-holed"?

A) Absurdity abounds
B) Existence trumps essence
C) The void of nothingness
D) Alienation and estrangement

Question 23

While Humanists assume that people are basically good, Existentialists

A) believe most people are basically evil.
B) are not afraid to look at the evil in people along with the good.
C) believe the same as Humanists.
D) tend to agree with Behaviorists by saying that people are neither good nor evil, but conditioned.

Question 24

May analyzed existential issues using

A) ultimate concerns.
B) Hegelian dialectics.
C) ontological principles.
D) Freud's theories.

Question 25

Existentialists view a person's anxiety as an expression of the much broader concept of

A) existential angst.
B) existential stress.
C) existential cortisol.
D) existential crisis.

Question 26

refers to our biological heritage as mammals, including our interdependence with the surrounding environment for oxygen, sunshine, and nutrients.

A) Eigenwelt
B) Mitwelt
C) Umwelt
D) None of the above

Question 27

What does May use in place of "libido"?

A) Psyche
B) Self-consciousness
C) Experiential field
D) Dasien

Question 28

Synthesis occurs when a higher level process

A) cancels the conflict.
B) preserves the elements of truth contained in both the thesis and antithesis.
C) transcends and sublimates the conflicts into a higher truth.
D) All of the above

Question 29

Which of the following is NOT one of May's six ontological principles?

A) Awareness
B) Centeredness
C) Participation with others
D) Connectedness

Question 30

The highest level of love, which May sees as the synthesizer of the dialectical opposites of sex and eros are

A) love vs. will.
B) eros vs. death.
C) agape vs. apathy.
D) agape vs. love.

Question 31

According to Becker, what is the ultimate existential tragedy?

A) The failure to find a larger cause in which to spend one's life
B) The failure to find love in one's family
C) The failure to find a life-long career that is satisfying
D) The failure to find the one, significant other, in which to share one's life

Question 32

Which psychologist analyzed existential issues using Hegelian dialectics?

A) Kelly
B) Ellis
C) May
D) Rank

Question 33

A person's world that includes social and interpersonal experiences is called the

A) Eigenwelt.
B) Umwelt.
C) Mitwelt.
D) Diewelt.

Question 34

Which of the following is NOT one of the recurring themes of existentialism?

A) Humans are born in motion
B) Absurdity abounds
C) The void of nothingness
D) Anxiety and anguish are intrinsic to existence

Question 35

Both Existentialists and Humanists

A) are not afraid to stare evil, ugliness, and death in the face.
B) go back to childhood and look at a person's repressed memories.
C) focus on love, beauty, and goodness.
D) seek the biological root of the problem.

Question 36

Which of the following ultimate concerns of human beings is NOT something that Existentialists address?

A) Life
B) Death
C) Despair
D) Dreams

Question 37

Which of the recurring existentialist themes was highly developed by Sartre, but can also be found in the works of Blaise Pascal?

A) Existence trumps essence
B) The void of nothingness
C) Absurdity abounds
D) Alienation and estrangement

Question 38

Existentialists tend to give priority to over essence.

A) love
B) passion
C) existence
D) soul

Question 39

Existentialists address the concerns of human beings.

A) conflictual
B) biological
C) ultimate
D) behavioral

Question 40

Which construct describes how Becker and Rank view the neurotic?

A) Impulsive
B) As a "failed artist"
C) As a "failed self-actualizer"
D) Depressed and anxious