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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 the author, where do the mentally-ill people discussed at the beginning of Appendix 6 spend their time?

2. According to the author, in what year did the rediscovery of La Tour begin?

3. Which of these is NOT an example given by the author of great nature art?

4. How did Carlyle feel when he walked down a crowded street?

5. What did Gericault use as a model for the people in "Raft of the Medusa"?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does the author say about Vuillard at the beginning of Appendix 5?

2. What is the difference, according to the author, between the two paintings he compares at the end of Appendix 5?

3. According to the author, how did Gericault see the world?

4. According to the author, how did La Tour feel about "theatrical effects" in his paintings?

5. According to the author in Appendix 6, how are the doors of Heaven and Hell opened for the living?

6. What is unique and praiseworthy about Japanese and Chinese art, according to the author?

7. What literary allusions does the author make near the end of Appendix 6 regarding schizophrenics?

8. What is the significance of the Wordsworth quote in Appendix 5?

9. What does Gericault say about his own artwork, according to the quote in Appendix 7?

10. To what does the author compare the world inhabited by schizophrenics in Appendix 6?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Huxley refers to the concept of "Ding an Sich," or "thing in itself," to express the concept of something which is simply "there." How does this concept relate to the work of various artists discussed by Huxley in the text? How does it relate to the visionary experiences Huxley has had?

Essay Topic 2

Peyote and its active ingredient mescalin have been used for centuries by Native Americans and other groups for their vision-inducing powers. What was known about mescalin when Huxley began his experiment? What was the purpose of the experiment? What was discovered during the course of the experiment? Were there any unexpected effects of the drug? If so, what were they?

Essay Topic 3

The difference between Eastern and Western art is significant to Huxley. What are the major differences between these two cultural art forms? Why does Huxley feel that these differences are so significant? How do the differences between Eastern and Western art relate to the visionary experiences Huxley talks about in the rest of the text?

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