欧洲文化入门课后习题答案

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1、 .欧洲文化入门课后习题答案：Division one: Greek culture and Roman culture希腊、罗马文化.Greek culture 希腊文化1. What are the major elements in European culture?There are two main elements the Greco-Roman element and the Judeo-Christian element.2. What were the main features of ancient Greek society?In Greek society, only

2、adult male citizen had real power and the citizenship was a set of rights which a man inherited from his father. The economy of Athens rested on an immense amount of slave labor. Slaves worked for their masters. The exploitation was a serious social problem. The Greeks loved sports. They often took

3、part in the contests of sports in Olympus Mount, thus Olympic Games came into being.3. What did Homer do? Why is he important in the history of European literature?He depicted the great Greek men who lived in the period 1200-1100B.C. and wars happening at that time. As an author of epics, he employe

4、d 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.4. Who were the outstanding dramatists of ancient Greece? What important plays did each of them write?Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripi

5、des were three outstanding dramatists of ancient Greece.Aeschylus: Prometheus Bound, Persians, AgamemnonSophocles: Oedipus the King, Electra, AntigoneEuripides: Andromache, Medea, Trojan Women5. Were there historians then? Who were they? What did each of them write about?Yes, there are. They were He

6、rodotus and Thucydides.Herodotus wrote about the wars between Greeks and Persians. Thucydides wrote about the war between Athens and Sparta and between Athens and Syracuse.6. Would you say that philosophy was highly developed then? Who were the major philosophers?No, I wouldnt. Because those philoso

7、phical ideas were only idealism or simple materialism or metaphysics. Socrates, Plato and Aristotle were the major philosophers at that time.7. Did Socrates write any book? How then do we know about him? What distinguished his philosophy?No, he didnt. We know Socrates chiefly through what Plato reco

8、rded of him in the famous Dialogues written by Plato. He considered that philosophy rested with the dissect of oneself and virtue was high worth of life. His method of argument, by questions and answers, was known as the dialectical method.8. Tell some of Platos ideas. Why do people call him an idea

9、list?(1) Men have knowledge because of the existence of certain general “ideas”, like beauty, truth, and goodness. (2) We should not look at the things which are not seen: for the things which are not seen eternal. Because he emphasized the importance of “ideas” and believed that “thought” had creat

10、ed the world, people call him an idealist.9. In what important ways was Aristotle different from Plato? What are some of Aristotles works that are still influential today?(1) Aristotle emphasized direct observation of nature and insisted that theory should follow fact. This is different from Platos

11、reliance on subjective thinking. (2) He thought that “idea” and matter together made concrete individual realities in which he differed from Plato who held that ideas had higher reality than the political world. His significant works includes: Ethics, Politics and Rhetoric.10. Who were some of the o

12、ther philosophers active in that period? Does the word “Epicurean” in its modern sense convey the true meaning of the philosophy of the ancient Epicureans? What were their views on pleasure?(1) They were Heracleitue, Democritus, Diogenes, Pyrrhon, Epicurus and Zeno.(2)No, it doesnt. The ancient Epic

13、ureans believed pleasure to be the highest worth of life, but by pleasure they meant, not sensual enjoyment but that attained by the practice of virtue. But this idea was misled by modern people, in their sense, the word “Epicurean” has come to mean indulgence in luxurious living.11. Say something a

14、bout Greek sculpture, pottery and architecture. What was the most famous Greek temple? Is it still there?(1) Along with the formation of Greek civilization, Greek sculpture, pottery and architecture got many great achievements. Greeks put into works of art the things they admired and worshiped, the

15、scientific rules they discovered. Greek art evolved from the archaic period to the classical period which marked its maturity. (2) the most famous temple was the Acropolis at Athens. (3) Yes, it is still there.12. Give some examples to show the enormous influence of Greek culture on English literatu

16、re. 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

17、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 Ulysses. . Roman culture 罗马文化1. What

18、 did the Roman 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 monarchy and to servility. Their religions were alike enough for most of

19、 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 t

20、o 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, which soon disintegrated.2. Explain Pax Romana.In the year 27 B.C., Octavius took supreme power as emperor with the title of Augustus. Two centuries

21、 later, the Roman empire reached its greatest extent in the North and East. The emperors mainly relied on a strong armythe famous Roman Legions and an influential bureaucracy to exert their rules. Thus the Romans enjoyed a long period of peace lasting 200 years. This remarkable phenomenon in the his

22、tory is known as Pax Romana.3. What contributions did the Romans make to the rule of law?In Romans earliest stage, only a number of patricians knew the customary legal procedure. When the rules were put into writing in the middle of the third century B.C. it marked a victory for the plebeians. There

23、 was further development of law under the emperors until it was codified, eventually to become the core of modern civil and commercial law in many Western countries.4. Who were the important prose writers in ancient Rome? What does “Ciceronian” mean? Did Cicero write that kind of rhetorical prose al

24、l the time?Marcus Tullius Cicero and Julius Caesar were two important prose writers. Ciceronian means Ciceros eloquent oratorical manner of writing, Which has had an enormous influence on the development of European prose. No, he didnt. Because Cicero appears as a different man with a different styl

25、e, far less rhetorical, but colloquial and intimate.5. Give the example of the terse style of Julius Caesars prose.An example: I came, I saw, I conquered (models of succinct Latin).6. Who was Lucretius? What did he do?(1)Lucretius was a poet of ancient Rome.(2)He wrote the philosophical poem On the

26、Nature of Thing to expound the ideas of Epicurus the Greek atomist.7. What is the book for which Virgil has been famous throughout the countries? In what ways is the book linked with the Greek past?(1)The book was Aeneid. (2)The story was about Aeneas, one of the princes of Troy, who escaped from th

27、at 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 p

28、ast.8. Why do we say Aeneus is a truly tragic hero?Because Aeneas had to betray the great passion of his life, his love for Dido, queen of Carthage, so that he could fulfill his historic mission.9. What is the chief Roman achievement in architecture? Give some examples.(1) The Romans were great engi

29、neers. They covered their world from one end to the other with roads, bridges, aqueducts, theatres and arenas.(2) Some examples: A. The Pantheon: the greatest the best preserved Roman temple built in 27B.C.B. Pont du Gard: it is an exceptionally well-preserved aqueduct that spans a wide valley in so

30、uthern France.10. Why are the wall-paintings of the ancient Romans still significant to us today?Roman painting was strongly influenced by the art of Greece. And it also had pecularities of its own. Unfortunately much of the painting no longer exists. There are, however, some wall-paintings from Pom

31、peii and other towns near Naples. These wall-paintings include still lives, landscape paintings and figure paintings. Among them were Lady Musician and Young Girl, the Maiden Gathering Flowers and the Landscape.Division two: the Bible and Christianity基督教与其圣经1. What was the Hebrews major contribution

32、 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 cont

33、ributions to the world civilization.2. 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

34、over wide areas.3. When did the great exodus take place?Around 1300 B.C., Moses, the famous Hebrew leader, went to see the pharaoh of Egypt, telling him that Yahweh wanted the pharaoh to end Hebrew slavery and let the Hebrew leave Egypt. With this began the Exodus, which lasted forty years.4. Who wa

35、s Moses? What did he do for the Hebrews?Moses was a famous Hebrew leader. Around 1300 B.C., Moses led the Hebrews to leave Egypt for the Promised Land. This was called the Exodus which lasted forty years. When the wandering Hebrews left the desert and entered the mountainous Sinai, Moses climbed to

36、the top of the mountain to receive form god message, which came to be known as the Ten Commandments. He died shortly before the Hebrews arrived at their homeland.5. 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

37、 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 peop

38、le; Do not desire ones neighbors wife, nor his house, nor his field, nor his servants, nor his livestock, nor anything else.6. 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,

39、 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

40、 the book of Revelation, a visionary account of the final triumph of Gods purpose.7. 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

41、, 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 Christianscontinued. The chief persecutions were under Nero, Domitian, Traj

42、an, Valerian and Diocletian. Despite these persecutions, Christianscontinued 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

43、 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 wh

44、o 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 oppon

45、ents.8. How did Christian monks help Westerncivilization survive?The Christian monks helped western civilization survive in many ways: The Christian monks spread Christianity to the Mediterranean region and some of them even suffered martyrdom; Some monks translated the Old Testament into Greek and

46、St. Jerome translated the whole Bible into Latin. Later some such as John Wycliffe and William Tyndale translated the Bible into the vernacular; In the Middle Ages, people in Western Europe were mainly divided into three classes: clergy, lords and peasants. Of these three classes, the only literate

47、section was the clergy. The Christian monks did a lot to help preserve and transmit a large part of the traditional heritage of the western culture. They not only translated the Bible into Latin or the Vernacular but also copied or translated the ancient works into the vernacular, such as the monks

48、in these monasteries set up by Charlemagne and Alfred the Great. 9. 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 ev

49、ery 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

50、 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 wri

51、ters 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

52、 has also influenced western philosophies and science. Thus the Bible has shaped western culture more decisively than anything else ever written.Division three: The Middle Ages 中世纪1. What happened in Western Europe after the decline of the Roman Empire?After the Roman Empire lost its predominance, a

53、 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 kille

54、d 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 p

55、olitics, law, art, and learning for hundreds years.2. 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.3. Who was Charles Martel?Ch

56、arles Martel was a Frankish ruler who gave his soldiers estates known as fiefs as a reward for their services in 732.4. What was the relationship between lord and vassal?Lords granted parts of their lands known as fiefs to vassals. In return, the vassals promised to fight for the lords.5. Into what

57、three groups were people divided under feudalism?Under feudalism, people of their Western Europe were mainly divided into three classes: clergy, lords, and peasants.6. What was the different 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 bo

58、rn. 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.7. 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 l

59、anguage 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 combinati

60、on of a variety od national characteristics.8. In what ways did Gothic art differ from Romanesque art?Although Gothic was an outgrowth of the Romanesque, it was given directions by a different aesthetic and philosophical spirit and reflected a much more ordered feudal society with full confidence.Ro

61、manesque architecture is characterized by massiveness, solidity, and monumentality with an overall blocky appearance. Sculpture and painting, primary in churches, developed a wonderful unity with architecture. Both arts often are imbued with symbolism and allegory. They are not based on natural form

62、s but use deliberate distortions for expressive impact.Gothic cathedrals soared high, their windows, arched and towers reaching heavenward, flinging their passion against the sky. They were decorated with beautiful stained glass windows and sculptures more lifelike than any since ancient Rome.9. Wha

63、t was the merit which Charlemagne and Alfred the Great share?Both Charlemagne and Alfred the Great contribution greatly to the European culture. Both of them encouraged learning by setting up monastery schools. The scholars in Alfred the Greats monasteries translated the Latin works into the vernacu

64、lar. Thus both helped preserve the ancient classics and culture.Division four: Renaissance and Reformation文艺复兴与改革1. 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

65、gave rise to urban economy and helpedItaly 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 cent