TEST
no. 2 (Unit 2)/OCTOBER 24, 2006 (Tuesday night class)
The second test will be given on October 24,
and it will be based on
the work covered from Sept. 26 (Archaic Greece) through October 17
(Plato's Republic). This includes all of the following: the assigned
readings (selections
from Herodotus' Histories and
Thucydides' History of the
Peloponnesian
War in the Procopy packet, the lyric poems
distributed in class and posted on Blackboard, Antigone, Oedipus Rex,
the Apology, Crito, and
assigned selections from the Republic), the course notes and
commentaries on
the website (including the summary of the
Odyssey and accompanying
notes, and the commentaries on the Trial of Socrates and the Republic),
material covered in class and/or discussed on the discussion
board. You will not be responsible for the material on Greek
pottery, the Temple of Zeus at Olympia, or the Parthenon: we
did not cover these in class. You are responsible for the
material on the Greek temple in the course notes for October 2 (including the
architectural elements that form part of the Doric and Ionic orders)
and an
understanding of the "refinements" and their importance.
Please arrive on time; you will have one hour
and twenty minutes
to complete the test. When you finish, I urge you to read it
over
carefully and check your work. Once you are done, please hand the test
in
and leave
the classroom. Please do not talk, take out books, or disturb other
students who are still taking the test. We will resume class
at 8:00 for a fifty-minute introduction to Rome, Virgil's Aeneid,
and Unit two. Please do not return to the classroom until after
all students have completed the test.
Please remember that I
will not answer questions about the test, about questions, or about
vocabulary during the test: understanding the test is part of the test.
The test will have four parts. You may do them
in any order:
Part 1: Identifications
10-25 short identifications: You will have to fill in the
blank
with the appropriate name or term taken from a list of terms (1 point
each)
______________________ Oedipus was raised here. (answer: Corinth)
______________________ I was branded a traitor and denied burial by my
uncle. (answer: Polynices)
______________________ These square panels are alongside the triglyphs
(answer: Metope)
______________________ My funeral is described in the last book
of the Odyssey (answer: Achilleus)
Part 2: Remember when... (Chronologies)
You will be given 8-12 statements about the plot of Oedipus Rex,
and you will be asked to number them in the order in which they
occurred IN THE PLAY. They are worth one point each. If, for
example, one of your statements is out of order, you will lose one
point. That will not affect my scoring of your remaining answers if
they are in the correct order. Be sure to read the statements
carefully. Sample statements:
_______ Oedipus told Jocasta how he killed a man at a place where three
roads meet. (note: the issue
here is when he was told, not when the killing took place)
_______ Oedipus learned he was not the son of Polybus. (note: the issue here is when he LEARNED
this from the messenger, not when he heard a rumor)
_______ Oedipus was told that Laius was killed by several men. (note: the issue here is when he was told,
not when the killing took place)
You will be given about 8-10 statements about archaic and classical
culture. You will be asked to number them in chronological order
beginning with the earliest. They are worth one point each. If,
for
example, one of your statements is out of order, you will lose one
point. That will not affect my scoring of your remaining answers if
they are in the correct order. Sample statements:
________ Xerxes led an army into Greece.
________ Socrates was tried.
________ The Theogony was written.
Part 3: You will be asked to "identify or define" several terms (at
least six, possibly as many as ten), and "explain
their importance." You will have a choice of terms. These will be worth
5 points each,
graded on a scale from 0-5 depending on how complete and accurate your
answer is. For example, a basic, satisfactory definition and an
additional accurate comment might get 2 points, a satisfactory "C
level" grade. "A level" answers that earn 4 or 5 points will typically
have
three to six informative sentences, with accurate and specific
information. Normally, the
best
answers should include the basic identification or definition; a fuller
description - in one to four sentences, including, for example, the
most important characteristics of an event or concept, or the most
important actions of a character; that description - or a clear,
concluding sentence or two - ought to make plain the primary importance
of the term or person in the
context of our readings and discussions. To explain the importance of a
person or character, you should relate it to important
issues discussed in class, such as the Greek concern with order, the
importance of the individual, the views of the gods,
or ideas of justice in Athens (those
are just some examples). The strongest answers will vary in
length and detail according
on the importance of the particular term or person. Representative
terms would include - but not be limited to - characters from the
assigned readings; other terms - episodes, events etc. - related to
those readings; major historical and cultural figures and events; terms
related to Greek literature, philosophy and the arts; types of Greek
pottery; and terms related to Greek architecture. If appropriate,
you may use a drawing to supplement your answer.
Answer
only the required number of questions: additional
answers will not be
graded).
Here are four sample answers
with commentary. They have been
taken from actual tests, but please remember that different materials
may have gotten more or less emphasis in different classes. I
have used
underlined,
bold-faced text to highlight key points in the
identifications, and I have placed my own comments in square brackets
and italics:
CITY DIONYSIA: a religious
festival in Athens
honoring the god Dionysus
[The first sentence provides a
concise definition with three of the four key elements: what this was
(“a religious festival”), where it took place (“in Athens”), in whose
honor it was held (“the god Dionysus”). The next section
describes the festival in specific and accurate detail, and, in doing
so, it elaborates on the fourth key element of the definition - this
was where the Greek plays were performed]. This festival
took place over five days.
On Day 1,
there were choral
odes and hymns sung by 50 boys from the tribes. Days 2, 3, 4
each consisted of a trilogy of
tragedies and a satyr play, with
each day’s plays all by the same author.
On the 5th
day, five
comedies were performed each by a different
author. It is not
known if women were in attendance at these festivals. (For good measure,
the student adds an interesting
remark which recalls a comment I made in class about the uncertainty
over whether women attended the plays. Even without this comment,
the answer
would have merited full credit.)
HAEMON was, in Sophocles’
Antigone, the son of Creon
and Eurydice. He was betrothed to
Antigone at the time of her sentence to death. Creon wants
him to be obedient
above all else and to support all his choices. Haemon tries to
point out to Creon that he is not ruling in the interest of the city
but for his own ego. He tells Creon he wishes to be a
good son, but must tell him the citizens don’t want Antigone put to
death. Creon is angry which is a little ironic since he claims to
put the state above all family bonds, which is actually what
Haemon is doing here. Haemon tries to
stab Creon after Antigone dies, but fails, so he turns
the sword on himself. It was prophesized
that Creon would lose a
child for his actions and it was Haemon.
[COMMENTS: This answer identifies
Haemon precisely and specifically
cites the major events surrounding HIS role in the play without just
giving
a plot summary: his betrothal to Antigone, her death sentence, his
argument with his father and both parties’ viewpoints, his effort to
kill his father - mentioned in very few answers, his suicide, and
Tiresias’ prophecy. The account of Haemon's argument with Creon
could be more concise, but the student does an excellent job of linking
his actions to an important issue in the play: the conflict
between the family and the state.]
PELOPONNESIAN WAR: [The
student begins with the basic facts] 431-404
B.C. Athens
and its allies go to war with Sparta
and its
allies. This is recorded by Thucydides
in his History
of the
Peloponnesian War. [The
student continues by describing the
effects of war in more detail] During this time, a plague in
Athens and
the Civil
War in Corcyra undermined the Athenian way of life, as
lawlessness,
treachery and irreverence to
the gods prevailed. [Finally,
the student explains the importance of the Peloponnesian War by
relating it to Greek ideas about justice and the gods, and the trial of
Socrates, two subjects of great importance in unit 2] Athens was
eventually defeated and two things happened as a result: people
began
searching for new definitions
of the gods and justice and the anxiety
and unrest resulting from Athens’ defeat helped turn the tide of
tolerance against Socrates, who was tried in 399 B.C.
POLYBUS: adopted father
of Oedipus, king of Corinth.
Oedipus
flees Corinth, thinking it is Polybus he is doomed to kill and Merope
he is doomed to marry. The death of Polybus
brings the messenger
who reveals
that Polybus was not really Oedipus’ father. [This is an
appropriately short - but very specific - answer for a minor
character. First, the student offers a basic
identification. Then, two concise statements accurately describe
the importance of Polybus in the unfolding of the plot of Oedipus
Rex. The answer is not cluttered with any unnecessary plot
summary.]
Part 4: You will be asked to choose between two and four quotations
from a longer list. For each quotation you
will be asked the following question: "Identify the source and context
of
the following quotation." Then you will be asked ONE of the
following questions: How does it contribute to an understanding
of the work from which it is taken? How does it contribute to an
understanding of important issues in ancient culture?
You should identify the source and context of the quotation briefly,
but as precisely as possible (work, speaker - if appropriate, immediate
context). Do not provide a thorough summary of the plot.
Then, you should answer the followup question, explaining how it
contributes to an understanding of the work or (depending on the
question) of important issues in ancient culture. In effect,
explain why it is an important quotation. I am not looking
for plot summaries,
but I am looking for relevant and
specific references to the assigned texts. Your answer will be
strengthened by specific references to the assigned readings.
The strongest answers would include about two sentences identifying the
source of the quotation and placing it in context, and two concise
paragraphs addressing the question. (10 points
each, graded on a scale from 0-10 (A: 9/10, B: 6-8, C: 3-5, D: 1-2),
depending on how complete and
accurate your answer is). Additional
answers will not be
graded.
ATTENTION: Given
the size of the classes, the nature of the questions, and other
pressing deadlines, it may take up
to three weeks for me to return this test.