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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. What according to McKenna seems to be the unique characteristic of the hominids?

2. What is a common metaphor for Soma?

3. Why must the plant that may have contributed to the emergence of consciousness be in Africa?

4. What is twilight state thinking characterized by?

5. Why would mushrooms have been especially noticeable on the African grasslands?

Short Essay Questions

1. What was Eliade's motive for exposing shamanism?

2. What does John Pfeiffer observe about Upper Paleolithic art?

3. The knowledge of what mystery was lost and what was the affect on humanity of this loss?

4. What did the Natufian culture bring to Palestine?

5. What psychological shift left European civilization at a disadvantage?

6. How does Western society regard healers? How is this a problem?

7. What are the two active chemical compounds in the Fly Agaric mushroom?

8. How can the Stropharia cubensis mushroom be seen as both male and female?

9. In what regard do most Westerners hold magic and those that claim to be practitioners of it?

10. Why does cattle being a major motif in the Soma cult make little sense if Wasson is right?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the current state of drug control. Do you think the model of regulation is effective? Why or why not? What should the government do about the 'drug problem' in America? Do you think McKenna was on the right track when he said that drugs should be legalized? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss alcohol consumption. How is it one of the most prevalent substances to induce intoxication on the market? What characteristic lends it it's stability in the consumerist marketplace? What is the problem with prolonged consumption?

Essay Topic 3

What kinds of suggestions did McKenna make that offers the potential to reshape the way people look at their environment? How could this disrupt the current way of life? Would this be a good thing or a bad thing in your opinion? Why do you hold this position?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 994 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample