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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. According to Veblen, what are sports based on?

2. What does Veblen say is the most serious occupation of the leisure class?

3. Who benefits by a scholar's work?

4. Why do existing institutions foster the propagation of a particular type of person?

5. What does Veblen say happens to the anthropomorphic cult as time goes by?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Veblen's book reveal Darwin's influence?

2. How do lower-class delinquents manifest the fighting spirit?

3. How does Veblen describe the difference between esoteric and exoteric knowledge?

4. What traits in men are required for the success of a community, in Veblen's description?

5. How do men change over time according to Veblen?

6. Where does Veblen believe the desire to gamble originates?

7. How does Veblen describe the situation of modern women, the women of his time?

8. How does the workman manifest his animistic view about luck?

9. How is education similar to the observance of devotional functions and magic?

10. How do sports relate to the fighting spirit?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe how "The Theory of the Leisure Class" applies to two professions: one where the profession fits Veblen's language very well, and another where Veblen's language does not apply as neatly.

Essay Topic 2

The master-slave dialectic posits that the masters need the slaves and that the slaves cannot function in an organized way without the masters. But Veblen's theories of vicarious leisure and vicarious consumption describe the servant class as mere evidence of the wealth of the master class. What economic agency does Veblen attribute to the servant class? Does the servant class make itself necessary to the leisure class?

Essay Topic 3

How do Veblen's definitions hold up in contemporary society? Are his definitions of the classes accurate? Are his definitions of the behaviors accurate? Have the times changed since he wrote "The Theory of the Leisure Class"? How have they changed? How have they remained the same?

(see the answer keys)

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