History 1121

Essay Questions for the Third Exam


1. I called the period 1350-1650 an era of transition. Relate the questions below to the theme that this period was one of transition.

  A. First, discuss the theme, Search for New Authorities.

  B. How was the Renaissance View of Man a search for new authorities?

  C. How was the Protestant Reformation a search for new authorities?

  D. How is there a search for new authorities in one other aspect of this period?

(This question will be worth 80 points.)
 

2. What do the following statements suggest about the era from 1350-1650? Use the quotations to develop the particular subject to which they refer and to show the characteristics of the period.

  A. "For when the Pope acts contrary to the Scriptures, it is our duty to stand by the Scriptures, to reprove him, and to constrain him." Martin Luther.

  B. "Man is the most fortunate of creatures and thus worthy of all admiration." Pico della Mirandola.

  C. "In the actions of men, and especially of princes from which there is no appeal, the end justifies the means." Niccolo Machiavelli.

(This question will be worth 80 points.)
 

3. We have considered several concepts which have been found in more than one culture which contributed to the culture "Europe", the first phase of which (the First Europe) was the medieval period. Five of these concepts are listed below.

  A. a fundamental order underlying the world.

  B. human society as a reflection of the order underlying the world.

  C. the idea of progress, or that the future will be better than the present and the past.

  D. man as a being of worth and dignity, capable of reasoning and understanding the order underlying all things.

  E. the idea of a transcendent, ethical deity overseeing the affairs of this world.

Write on each of these concepts, describing the form in which the concept appeared in one of the cultures from ancient Judaism up to and including the First Europe. You may relate the concepts to separate cultures or use the same culture for more than one concept.

(This question will be worth 80 points.)

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