欧洲文化入门复习提纲(含答案).doc

学习资料收集于网络，仅供参考Questions for Revision:1. What are the major elements in Western culture?There are two main elements the Greco-Roman element and the Judeo-Christian element2. What did Homer do? Why is he important in the history of Western literature? He described the great Greek men who lived in the period 1200-1100B.C. and wars happening at that time. As an author of epics（史诗）, he employed fine literary language to describe wars and men, even though they were dull. He stood in the peek of Greek literature and exerted a great influence on his followers.3. Would you say that philosophy was highly developed in ancient Greece? Who were the major philosophers?1 No, I wouldnt. Because those philosophical ideas were only idealism (理想主义) or simple materialism（唯物主义） or metaphysics（形而上学）. 2 Socrates(苏格拉底), Plato（柏拉图） and Aristotle（亚里斯多德）.4. Did Socrates write any book? How then do we know about him? What distinguished his philosophy?1 No, he didnt.2 we know Socrates chiefly through what Plato recorded of him in the famous Dialogues written by Plato. He considered that philosophy rested with（取决于） the dissect（仔细分析） of oneself and virtue was high worth of life. His method of argument, by questions and answers, has come to be known as the dialectical method.5. Tell some of Platos ideas. Why do people call him an idealist? Man have knowledge because of the existence of certain general “ideas”, like beauty, truth, goodness./ We should not look at the things which are not seen: for the things which are not seen eternal (永恒的). (2) Because he emphasized the importance of “ideas” and believed that “thought” had created the world, so people call him an idealist.6. In what important ways was Aristotle different from Plato? What are some of Aristotles works that are still influential today? For one thing, Aristotle emphasized direct observation of nature and insisted that theory should follow fact. This is different from Platos reliance on subjective thingking.Also, he thought “form”(= idea) and matter together made up concrete individual realities. Here, too, he differed from Plato who held that ideas had a higher reality than the physical world.Ethics(an introduction to moral philosophy), Politics, Poetics (a treatise on literary theory)and Rhetoric(dealing with the art of persuading an audience)7. Give some examples to show the enormous influence of Greek culture on English literature.Some examples:(1) A Freudian term “Oedipus Complex” of 19th century originating from a Greek tragedy in which king Oedipus unknowingly killed his father and married his mother. (2) In the early part of the 19th century , in England alone, three young Romantic poets expressed their admiration of Greek culture in works which have themselves become classics: Byron s Isle of Greece, Shelley s Hellas and Prometheus Unbound and Keats s Ode on a Grecian Urn. (3) In the 20th century, there are Homeric parallels in the Irishman James Joyces modernist masterpiece (杰作) Ulysses. 8. What did the Romans have in common with the Greeks? And what was the chief difference between them?(1)The Romans had a lot in common with the Greeks. Both peoples had traditions rooted in the idea of the citizen-assembly, hostile to（反对，敌视） monarchy and to servility（过分屈从的行为或态度）. Their religions were alike enough for most of their deities to be readily identified Greek Zeus with Roman Jupiter, Greek Aphrodite with Roman Venus, and so onand their myths to be fused. Their languages worked in similar ways and were ultimately related, both being members of the Indo-European language family which stretches from Bangladesh to Iceland.(2) There was one big difference. The Romans built up a vast empire. The Greeks didnt, excepted for the brief moment of Alexanders conquests（征服）, which soon disintegrated（分裂）.9. Give an example of the terse（简洁） style of Julius Caesars prose（散文）.An example: I came, I saw, I conquered（胜利） (models of succinct Latin).10. What is the book for which Virgil has been famous throughout the centuries? In what ways in the book linked with the Greek past?(1)The book was Aeneid（埃涅伊德）. (2)The story was about Aeneas, one of the princes of Troy, who escaped from that burning city when it fell to the Greeks, to carry on the Trojan cause in a new place, Rome. He didnt go alone, but, carrying his father on his shoulders and leading his little son by the hand, a family group of three generations moved together. Thus in this way the book is linked with the Greek past.11. What was the Hebrews major contribution to world civilization?The history of the Hebrews was handed down orally from one generation to another in the form of folktales and stories, which were recorded later in the Old Testament, which still later became the first part of the Christian Bible. Thus the Hebrews made one of the greatest contributions to the world civilization.12. Why do we say Judaism and Christianity are closely related?Judaism and Christianity are closely related: it was the Jewish tradition which gave birth to Christianity; both originated in Palestinethe hub of migration and trade route, which led to exchange ideas over wide areas.13. What are the Ten Commandments about?The Ten Commandment are a set of rules Moses commands all Israel to obey in the name of God: Yahweh（耶和华） is the only God all Israel should worship; Do not carve and serve any idol to worship; Do not take the name of God in vain; Keep the Sabbath day and labor in the other six days; Honor and respect ones parents; Do not kill; Do not commit adultery; Do not steal; Do not bear false witness against people; Do not desire ones neighbors wife, nor his house, nor his field, nor his servants, nor his livestock, nor anything else.14. What writings make up the New Testament?The New Testament consists of 14 books. The four accounts, which were believed to have been written by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, four of Jesus early followers, are the first part of the New Testament and tell of the birth, teaching, death and Resurrection of Jesus. Then come: the Acts of the Apostles, a history of the early Christian movement: the Epistles, or letters to the church groups around the Mediterranean; and lastly the book of Revelation, a visionary account of the final triumph of Gods purpose.How did the relations between Christians and the Roman government change? The early Christian were subject to persecutions by the Roman government. Jesus Christ was crucified by the Roman government. After Jesus died, his disciplines St. Peter and St. Paul suffered martyrdom under the Roman Emperor Nero about 65 A.D. Nero even burned Christians in his garden in 64 A.D. For 240 years after the martyrdoms of Peter and Paul, persecutions of Christians continued. The chief persecutions were under Nero, Domitian, Trajan, Valerian and Diocletian. Despite these persecutions, Christians continued to spread steadily over the Mediterranean region. It began to draw men and women from all classes and the attitude of the Roman government toward Christianity began to change. By 305 Diocletian gave up his effort to destroy the young religion. When Constantine won the throne from his rivals, he believed that God had helped him, and in 313 he issued the Edict of Milan which granted religious freedom to all and made Christianity legal. Under Constantine Christianity made great contribution of the empire. The emperors who followed Constantine continued pro-Christian policies. In 392 A.D., Emperor Theodosius made Christianity the official religion of the empire and outlawed all other religions. Now Christianity had changed from an object of oppression to a weapon in the hands of the ruling class to crush their opponents.15. Why do we say the Bible has shaped Western culture more decisively than anything else ever written?Judeo-Christian tradition constitutes one of the two major components of European culture. The Bible which is virtually related to every phase of human life greatly influences peoples daily life, especially in the Middle Ages when almost everyone was a Christian; The Bible has great impact upon western literature. For a long period of time, the Latin Bible was accepted as the authority and Latin was official language of the Roman Catholic Church, so most Europe literature at that time was in Latin. Besides it is generally accepted that the English Bible and Shakespeare are two great reservoirs of Modern English. Furthermore, the use of Biblical themes has been a literary tradition. In fact few great English and American writers of the 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th century can be read and appreciated with satisfaction without a sufficient knowledge of the Bible; The study of the Christian teaching especially the Bible has become an important branch of knowledgescholasticism which has been prevalent for centuries; The Bible has also influenced western philosophies and science. Thus the Bible has shaped western culture more decisively than anything else ever written.16. What happened in Western Europe after the decline of the Roman Empire?After the Roman Empire lost its predominance, a great many Germanic Kingdoms began to grow into the nations know as England, France, Italy, and Germany in its place. These nations of Western Europe were in the scene of frequent wars and invasions. The political unity had given way to widespread destruction and confusion. Hunger and disease killed many lives and village fell into ruin and great areas of land lay waste. There was no central government to keep the order. The only organization that seemed to unite Europe was the Christian church. Christianity was almost the all and the one of Medieval lives in western Europe and took lead in politics, law, art, and learning for hundreds years.17. What were the cultural characteristics of the period from 500 to 1000?Above all, the cultural characters of this period were the heritage and achievement of Roman culture and the emergence of Hebrew and Gothic culture.18. What was the relationship between lord and vassal（奴隶）?Lords granted parts of their lands known as fiefs（封地） to vassals. In return, the vassals promised to fight for the lords.19. Into what three groups were people divided under feudalism?Under feudalism, people of their Western Europe were mainly divided into three classes: clergy, lords, and peasants.20. What was the difference between a serf and a free man?A serf had no land and no freedom. He was bond to the land where he had been born. A free man was a peasant who usually was a worker who made the ploughs, shod the horses, and made harnesses for oxen and horses.21. What is the importance of the using of vernacular languages in Medieval literature?In the Middle Ages, some “national epics” were written in vernacular languagethe language of various national states that came into being at that period, and some monks advocated translating the Bible in vernacular. Literary works were no longer all written in Latin. It was the starting point of a gradual transition of European literature from Latin culture that was the combination of a variety od national characteristics.22. Why is the Medieval Age also known as “the age of darkness”? During the Medieval times there was no central government to keep the order. The only organization that seemed to unite Europe was the Christian church. It continued to gain widespread power and influence. In the Late Middle Ages, almost everyone in western Europe was a Christian and a member of the Christian Church. Christianity took the lead in politics, law, art, and learning for hundreds of years. It shaped peoples lives. That is why the Middle Ages is also known as “the age of darkness”.23. What made Italy the birthplace of the Renaissance?Because of its geographical position, foreign trade developed early in Italy. This brought Italy into contact with other cultures and gave rise to urban economy and helped Italy accumulate wealth which was an essential factor for the flowering of art and literature.For two centuries beginning from the late 15th century, Florence was the golden city which gave birth to a whole generation of poets, scholars, artists and sculptors. There was in Florence a revival of interest in classical learning and rising of humanist ideas. And to spread the new ideas, libraries and academies were founded. In the 15th century printing was invented and helped to spread humanist ideas.24. What are the main elements of humanism? How are these elements reflected in art and literature during the Italian Renaissance?Humanist is the essence of Renaissance. Humanists in renaissance believed that human beings had rights to pursue wealth and pleasure and they admires the beauty of human body. This belief ran counter to the medieval ascetical idea of poverty and stoicism, and shifted mans interest from Christianity to humanity, from religion to philosophy, from heaven to earth, from the beauty of God to the beauty of human in all its joy, senses and feeling.The philosophy of humanism is reflected in the art and literature during the Italian Renaissance in the literature works of Boccaccio and Petrarch and in the art of Giotto, Brunelleschi, Donatello, Giorgione, da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, and Titian, etc. In their works they did not stress death and other world but call on man to live and work for the present.25. Why do we look upon Petrarch as the father of modern poetry?Petrarch was a prominent figure of his time, a great figure in Italian literature and one of the great humanists during the Renaissance. He has written numerous lyrics, sonnets and canzonets. Petrarch rejected medieval country conventions and sang for true love and earthly happiness in his sonnets. Later sonnets became a very important literary form of poetry in Europe and a lot of poets, such as Shakespeare, Spencer, and Mrs. Browning, were indebted to him. Thus we look upon him as the father of modern poetry26. How did Italian Renaissance art and architecture break away from medieval tradition?The Italian Renaissance art and architecture radically broke away from the medieval methods of representing the visible world. Compared with the latter, the former has the following distinct features:Art broke away from the domination of church and artist who used to be craftsmen commissioned by the church became a separate strata doing noble and creative works;Themes of painting and architecture changed from purely celestial realm focusing on the stories of the Bible, of God and Mary to an appreciation of all aspects of nature and man;The artists studied the ruins of Roman and Greek temples and put many of the principles of ancient civilization into their works;Artists introduced in their works scientific theories of anatomy and perspective.27. In what way was Da Vince important during the Renaissance?Leonado da Vinci was a man of many talents, a Renaissance man in the true sense of the word. He was a painter, a sculptor, an architect, a musician, an engineer, and a scientist all in one.As an artist, he was very important. He has left to the world famous works such as Last Supper and Mona Lisa. Then his excellent use of contrast between light and darkness showed him as an excellent painter. Most important of all, da Vinci had profound understanding of art. In his 5000 notebooks, he put down his observations of life and his sketch drawing. In his painting he stressed the expression of emotional states. His understandings of art exerted great influence upon painters of his own generation and generations to follow.He was also very important in the science of medicine. During his life he dissected more than thirty corpses and was a great anatomist in Italy. He placed art in the service of anatomy as a science based on extensive research. 28. Why did England come later than other countries during the Renaissance? In what way was English Renaissance different from that of other countries? Who were the major figures and what were their contributions?Because of the War of Roses within the country and its weak and unimportant position in world trade, Renaissance came later in England than other European countries. Compared with the Renaissance in other countries, the Renaissance in England has the following features:It came later; but when it did come, it was to produce some towering figures in English literature and the world literature;The Renaissance in England found its finest expression in drama, crowned by Shakespeare;The Renaissance in England enjoyed a period of political and religious stability under the reign of Elizabeth .The major figures of this period were William Shakespeare, Edmund Spencer, Sir Thomas more, Francis Bacon, and etc. Shakespeare has contributed to the world a legacy of literature heritage by turning out so many outstanding plays and poems. He was one of the two reservoirs of modern English language. Thomas More has written Utopia and depicted in this work an ideal non-Christian state where everybody lives a simple life and shares the goods in common. He contributed to the western tradition of envisioning an ideal state. Spencer has influenced many English poets.29. What were some of the scientific advances during the Renaissance?During the Renaissance, many sciences has made great progress. Firstly, it was an age of geographical discoveries: Columbus has discovered the New World in 1492; Dias discovered the Cape of Good Hope in 1487; da Gama discovered the route to India round the Cape of Good Hope in 1497; Amerigo discovered and explored the mouth of the Amazon and accepted South America as a new continent.Secondly, Copernicus believed that the earth and other planets orbit about the sun and that earth is not at the center of the universe. Here began the mo