hum test #1

at the end of the Epic of Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh is unable to attain eternal life. What is a plausible reason for his failure?

no human is deserving of immortality. this epic is about coming to terms with mortality

before 11000 ice, virtually all human societies were

nomadic, moving incessantly in search of limited food

One of the notable characteristics of civilization was the development of:

occupational specialization

Which year falls in the 3rd century B.C.E.? A. 2500 B.C.E. B. 217 B.C.E. C. 301 B.C.E. D. 34 B.C.E. E. 200 B.C.E.

B. 217 BCE

By the sixth century B.C.E., Greeks founded numerous colonies around the Mediterranean basin, the most significant of which were located where? A. Syria and the Black Sea. B. Anatolia and Italy. C. Egypt and Palestine. D. the Levant and Mesopotamia. E. France and North Africa.

B. Anatolia and Italy

Zarathustra attempted to redefine religion A. as a set of ritual practices centered on animal sacrifice. B. so that it would be concerned more with dietary rules and ritual. C. as the mystical insights achieved through fasting. D. as ethical practices common to all people. E. as practices centered on temple worship conducted by priests.

D. as ethical practices common to all people

In the epic of Gilgamesh who informs Gilgamesh about the plant of immortality? A. Enkidu B. Ishtar C. Shamhat D. Utnapishtim E. Humbaba

D. Utnapishtim

the Paleolithic age begins with the earliest ancestors of modern human beings, who used stone tools, approximately ---- years ago

2 million

Sumerian mathematics was very sophisticated and based on multiplications and divisions of

30s and 60s

Those Greeks who were able to accumulate wealth during the chaotic, isolated period A. eventually emerged as the Greek aristocracy. B. carefully avoided acts of piracy and military confrontation. C. founded the first religious temples and rejected the "heroic ideal." D. are known to historians today as "pre-Socratic" philosophers. E. colonized the islands of the Aegean Sea.

A. eventually emerged as the Greek aristocracy

The social center and organizational hub of the Greek polis was: A. the agora. B. the temple. C. the khora. D. the synoikismos. E. the harbor.

A. the agora

Heinrich Schliemann and Sir Arthur Evans A. were archaeologists who dug up Troy, Mycenae, and Knossos. B. refused to accept the historical character of Homer's Iliad and Odyssey. C. argued that the Greeks had taken all their ideas from African cultures. D. discovered the source of the annual flooding of the Nile. E. were archaeologists who discovered Pharos, the lighthouse of Alexandria.

A. were archaeologist who dug up Troy, Mycenae, and Knossos

Homosocial relationships between men of the aristocratic class in Ancient Greece were part of A. ritual religious practices. B. a mentoring process for young men. C. military bonding rituals. D. a Greek movement to embrace more liberal sexual practices. E. a protest to end the Peloponnesian War.

B. a mentoring process for young men

The Neolithic Revolution allowed women to A. participate fully in social and political governance. B. become the primary laborers in the growing of crops. C. have fewer children and devote less time to child care. D. have more children and devote more time to child care. E. become the religious leaders of communities.

B. become the primary laborers in the growing of crops

The accomplishments of King Darius of Persia included A. recruiting foreign mercenaries for his armies. B. building roads for transport and postal service. C. extending Persian rule over Greece and the Aegean. D. capturing the bandits that had terrorized Persepolis. E. conquering the civilization of the Indus River Valley.

B. building toads for transport and postal service

Cuneiform was the ancient writing system of the Sumerians but it adopted widely by other cultural groups, as well. Why was that? A. Cuneiform was a pictographic language and images cross linguistic boundaries. B. Each symbol in cuneiform represented a different syllable, which was easily adapted to different languages. C. All of the different cultural groups of Ancient Sumeria spoke the same language. D. Cuneiform was only a numbering system used for taxation and did not record complex language.B.

B. each symbol in cuneiform represented a different syllable, which was easily adapted to different languages

The growth of Athenian democracy, with its emphasis on equality between citizens, led to A. greater equality between men and women. B. greater inequality between men and women. C. greater social freedoms for women, but no new political rights. D. greater equality between all individuals by abolishing slavery. E. distrust of all non-Athenians and isolationism.

B. greater inequality between men and women

Members of the Greek aristocracy created networks of economic, political, and social influence through the practice of A. war. B. guest friendship. C. colonization. D. multinational trade. E. highly ritualized diplomatic meetings.

B. guest friendship

What is the significance of Draconian law? A. It called for the creation of the Areopagus, led by 9 Archons or "first men." B. It represented a shift towards governance based on written law, rather than in the authority of the person. C. It called for the creation of the Ekklesia, which extended voting rights to metics as well as native-born Athenians. D. It called for the execution of all Spartans who entered Athens's city boundaries. E. It was the first set of democratic laws written in Ancient Athens.

B. it represented a shift towards governance based on written law, rather than n the authority of the person

Which sentence best describes the structure of the Spartan government circa 600 B.C.E.? A. Sparta was organized and led by a core of military generals who were elected annually before the spring campaigns. B. Sparta was ruled by a citizen assembly, a council of elders, and two kings. C. Sparta was a democracy modeled after the government of its rival, Athens. D. Sparta was ruled by a cadre of military officers. E. Sparta was an oligarchy ruled by a small group of wealthy merchants.

B. sparta was ruled by a citizen assembly, a council of elders, and two kings

Why was Sumer an uninviting environment for the first cities? A. The area has no natural defenses. B. The soil was sandy and the rivers flooded unpredictably. C. The marshy land between the rivers was fertile breeding ground for malaria and other deadly diseases. D. The rivers were largely unnavigable during long periods of the year, making trade difficult. E. The region had no forests for timber or usable stone to quarry for building materials.

B. the soil was sandy and the rivers flooded unpredictably

The switch from subsistence by food gathering to food production A. required people to give up their faith in storm and wind gods. B. was a momentous revolution that made stable settlements possible. C. meant that women were no longer part of the labor force. D. prohibited raising domestic animals as livestock. E. required seasonal movement, allowing for summer and winter settlements.

B. was a momentous revolution that made stable settlements possible

Although hominid existence extends back many millennia, human civilization was fully achieved around the year A. 13,000 B.C.E. B. 8000 B.C.E. C. 5000 B.C.E. D. 3000 B.C.E. E. 1000 B.C.E.

D. 3000 BCE

The Archaic Age of Greece begins with the emergence of the polis and the return of writing, but most of what we know of the period comes from the particular perspective of the A. Corinthians. B. Spartans. C. Thebans. D. Athenians. E. Persians.

D. Athenians

Which ancient writing system has yet to be deciphered? A. Egyptian Hieroglyphic B. Cuneiform C. Phoenician D. Linear A E. Linear B

D. Linear A

Shortly before 3000 B.C.E., people in the Near East discovered that bronze could be produced by A. applying advances in Sumerian mathematics and astronomy. B. heating copper to extremely high temperatures in pottery furnaces. C. combining copper with iron. D. combining copper metal with arsenic or tin. E. combining iron with tin or arsenic.

D. combining copper metal with arsenic or tin

In preparation for war with Persia, Athens financed the A. creation of a permanent standing army. B. manufacture of ten thousand new swords and shields. C. evacuation of the port city of Marathon. D. creation of a naval fleet. E. construction of new, higher walls around Athens.

D. creation of a naval fleet

Which of the four periods of western history are we not covering in this class? A. Pre-History B. Ancient History C. Medieval History D. Modern History

D. modern history

Which of the following is not a characteristic of an epic? A. Deals with gods and heroes B. Elevated language C. Universalizing D. Often short in length E. Although it is often associated with fiction, it can illustrate many things about the factual parts of the society

D. short in length

What made Greek battle formations and strategy formidable? A. the use of projectile weapons. B. the timely use of multiple attack methods. C. the deep faith the Greeks had in the gods. D. the training and skill of the hoplites to stay together. E. their superior iron weaponry.

D. the training and skill of the hostiles to stay together

What was the primary reason that the Spartans ritualistically declared war on their own slaves on an annual basis? A. To decrease the population in response to decreases in food supplies. B. To help the young hoplites hone their military skills for future battles. C. To have war as a part of their cultural upbringing. D. To prevent the possibility of revolt by the Messenian helots. E. To make sacrifices to Apollo.

D. to prevent the possibility of revolt by the Messenian helots

The Late Bronze Age: A. virtually wiped out all smaller states in the Mediterranean. B. saw rulers and leaders refusing to acknowledge each other. C. produced very few cultural exchanges. D. was an age of superpowers. E. saw a decline in long-distance trade.

D. was an age of superpowers

Which of the following statements regarding women in Sparta is FALSE? A. The main role of the Spartan women was to bear healthy children. B. Women trained for athletic competitions. C. Women were able to engage in work and play outside of the private sphere of the home. D. Women in Sparta were required to go to war alongside their husbands. E. Women in Sparta were often viewed as scandalous due to their autonomy by those outside of Sparta.

D. women of Sparta were required to go to war alongside their husbands

One of the earliest civilizations, Sumer, flourished in what the Greeks called Mesopotamia, between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in modern-day A. Egypt. B. Iran. C. Saudi Arabia. D. Ethiopia. E. Iraq.

E. Iraq

The origins of Greek democracy can be identified, in part, in the rule of the Athenian aristocrat: A. Areopagus. B. Peisistratos. C. Hectares. D. Drakon. E. Solon.

E. Solon

After 2500 B.C.E., the tombs of Sumerian lugals often included armor and jewelry. This demonstrates both the wealth of the lugals and shows that Sumerians believed A. gifts to the gods were necessary at death. B. there was no afterlife. C. the dead had to pay a toll to enter the land of the dead. D. all their possessions should be buried with them. E. items such as these would be useful in the afterlife.

E. items such as these would be useful in the afterlife

Hoplites were organized into formations called a: A. platoon. B. wedge. C. akoron . D. hoplon . E. phalanx .

E. phalanx

A tyrant was often able to seize power because A. he was a wealthy aristocrat who was able to raise a private army. B. he had the support of the aristocratic class. C. he was a charismatic leader who had the support of the slave population. D. he manipulated the machinery of government to concentrate power in his hands. E. the hoplites supported him militarily.

E. the hoplites supported him militarily

Unlike ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt was a very stable culture. One reason for stability is

Egypt is geographically isolated and hard to conquer

Solon was an aristocrat who had made his name and fortune as a hoplite soldier and thus had the respect of every faction in Athenian society. TF

False

The center of Mycenaean society was the village, which gave a sense of family and responsibility to the people and encouraged loyalty to the king, who was depicted as a father to his people. TF

False

in what modern day country did the first city states of Ancient Mesopotamia arise?

IRAQ?

it is important to ask ourselves what a society values when we examine an object or text. When examining Venus of Willendorf, what can you infer is valued in this society?

fertility

The Spartans failed to come to the aid of the Athenians during the battle of Marathon because they were occupied in putting down a helot rebellion. True False

false

The Greek Polis was

a collective group organized around an agora

The effect of the arrival of the Sea Peoples on the Near East was to force fledgling kingdoms to unite, through conquest or consent, in order to stand up to this new threat.

false

what was the critical innovation that led to the rise of cities?

agriculture

Democracy originated in Greece from the idea of the demos, which literally means A. the mob. B. neighborhood. C. clan. D. tribe. E. family.

b. neighborhood

The Iliad and the Odyssey A. are epic poems with no foundation in historical events. B. provide evidence about early and Archaic Greece. C. were composed in the Classical Period but were based on older, oral sources. D. are the first examples of epic poetry from the ancient world. E. are unquestionably based on the historical events of Mycenaean Greece.

b. provide evidence about early and archaic Greece

why do we know more about Egyptian funeral practices than we do about other aspects of Egyptian culture?

because the surviving records we have mostly come from tombs and coffins

which comparison between Egypt and Mesopotamian civilizations is false>

both enjoyed significant political and cultural interactions

The best men or aristoi of early Greece modeled their behavior on A. the Babylonian military class. B. wealthy Phoenician traders. C. the heroes of the Iliad and the Odyssey. D. the heroes of the Epic of Gilgamesh. E. Persian soldiers.

c. the heroes of the Illiad and the Odyssey

Cleisthenes is important in the history of Athenian government because he: A. defeated Persia at the battle of Marathon. B. championed the cause of the aristocrats and took steps to limit the power of the demos. C. rejected the practice of ostracism, which allowed Athenians to banish a citizen for ten years. D. defeated Sparta in a series of brilliant naval campaigns. E. championed the cause of the demos and took steps to limit the power of aristocrats.

championed the cause of the demos and took steps to limit the power of the aristocrats

The effect of the arrival of the Sea Peoples on the Near East was to force fledgling kingdoms to unite, through conquest or consent, in order to stand up to this new threat. True False

false

The vast majority of Athenian citizens were of the merchant/artisan class. True False

false

greek symposia excluded all women

false

labor among paleolithic peoples was strictly divided along gender lines, as men did the hunting and women the gathering TF

false

all of the following are signs of a developing human culture during the Stone Age except: a. tools b.burial sights c. cave paintings d. caves used for dwellings

d. caves used for dwellings

cave paintings, such as those found is Lascaux, France, are evidence of

development of language as well as religious and artistic ideas

The Greeks referred to some people with whom they came into contact as barbarians because they: A. did not speak Greek. B. were nomadic peoples. C. were from lands that exported berries. D. worshiped gods different from the Greeks. E. fought without any regard for the formalities of war.

did not speak greek

Although the history of Greece before the rise of the polis is largely undocumented and therefore difficult to study thoroughly, it seems clear that the A. population of mainland Greece rose steadily throughout the period. B. early Greeks had no developed concept of heroic ideals or epic poetry. C. early Greeks had little interest in religion or the gods. D. early Greeks were living in a period of cultural isolation and economic stasis. E. early Greeks traded extensively with the rest of the ancient world.

early greeks were living in a period of cultural isolation and economic stasis.

The growing class of aristocrats at the end of the early age of Greece made their wealth by A. heavy taxation of the temples. B. engaging in trade and commercial enterprises. C. conquest and colonization. D. exploiting the discovery of new silver mines in the highlands. E. piracy and plundering the peasant class.

engaging in trade and commercial enterprises

In the symposium, Archaic Age Greek aristocrats: A. competed in athletic games against men from all social levels. B. discussed matters of state and edited important political documents. C. were introduced to respectable women who might become future wives and confidantes. D. engaged in philosophical debates concerning aesthetics. E. enjoyed wine and listened to poetry.

enjoyed wine and listened to poetry

Agricultural surplus made it possible for early societies to become more stable and to expand in population, yet also kept early societies socially stagnant as all labor was focused on the land and the cultivation of more grain. True False

false

Archaic Athens was the leading commercial city of Greece.

false

The Ancient Egyptians were the only culture to have monumental architecture in the 3rd millennium BCE TF

false

A mysterious wave of invasions entered the Mediterranean world and destroyed almost all of the preexisting civilizations:

in the second millennium BCE

the common religion of the Sumerians

included many gods, with a different god worshiped in each city-state.

Why was ostracism important to Athenian democracy? A. It prevented the rise to power of a tyrant who would take away power from the people as a whole. B. It sent dissenters to Sparta, which eventually led to the Peloponnesian Wars. C. It prevented overpopulation in Athens and the surrounding communities, thereby maintaining the sustainable growth of the city. D. It granted temporary power to one archon to serve as a tyrant for a year. E. It allowed for the redistribution of land to poor farmers who would have, in other generations, been forced to sell themselves into slavery.

it prevented the rise to power of a tyrant who would take away power from the people as a whole

all of the following were social effects of the rise of civilization EXCEPT

skepticism about divine control of nature

the epic of Gilgamesh, the dramatic confrontation betweeN Gilgamesh and Enkindu and its aftermath, illustrates:

that the forces of nature cannot be overcome by civilization and death is inevitable

The Greeks became literate again during the ninth century B.C.E. by adopting A. cuneiform script from the Assyrians. B. Egyptian hieroglyphics. C. the Phoenician alphabet. D. the Hebrew alphabet. E. the Etruscan alphabet.

the Phoenician alphabet

all of the following were ancient river valley civilizations EXCEPT

the Rhine river valley

all of the following artifacts could be used for typological dating except....

the amount of radioactive carbon left in the artifact

which of the following was an important elements in the development of early settlements?

the establishment of the first local and then long-distance trade routes throughout the Near East

one of the material consequences to the Neolithic revolution was the creation of surplus goods. Which of the following inventions was critical for the physical maintenance of these goods?

the wheel

Since human beings in the Paleolithic period had no domestic animals:

they had no significant wealth beyond what they could carry

Hierarchical structures of leadership were uncommon in early hunter-gatherer societies. True False

true

Homo sapiens neanderthalensis and Homo sapiens sapiens lived at the same time in history. TF

true

The term thalassocracy means "sea empire." TF

true

when both Egypt and Mesopotamia used the wheel in pottery making, in the Early Bronze Age, only Mesopotamia used the wheel for transport and war chariots TF

true