View a FREE sample

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

Short Answer Questions

1. Modern photography seems to admit that __________ is the sum total of all art in photography.

2. Both painting and photography share a devotion to traditional __________ within their finished pieces.

3. "Despite the efforts of contemporary photographers to exorcise the _____________, something lingers."

4. __________ is difficult, tedious, and performed by skilled experts, according to Sontag in this book.

5. It is __________ to distinguish one photographer's work from another, according to the opinion of Sontag.

Short Essay Questions

1. What is difficult, if not impossible to do when it comes to looking at photographs, as opposed to looking at paintings?

2. What does this chapter seem to believe the current definition of modern society is in relation to images and things?

3. What do most claim about the intentions of photography, according to the long essays in this chapter?

4. Why did photography enjoy a sudden burst in popularity, according to the text in this chapter?

5. What was the progression of photography in relation to its artistic status, according to this chapter?

6. Why is a photograph of an object a more reliable way of looking at an object, according to the text in this chapter?

7. What do some philosophers - namely Balzac - have to say about the idea or the act of taking photographs?

8. Sontag makes a bold assertion in regards to photography and the work of some artists. What does she assert?

9. Why is it so simple for people in society to collect photographs, according to the text in this chapter?

10. What is the struggle that's described in relation to paintings versus taking photographs, according to Sontag?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Whitman strove to see what was similar in all beings as opposed to what was unique about people, it seems.

Part 1: Do you think people are unique or are we all the same? Why or why not?

Part 2: How does the perception of the world change when you realize all people are the same?

Part 3: Why do you think it's important to see similarities among people? Or isn't it?

Essay Topic 2

In the end, Sontag points out that some people seem to prefer photographic images to reality.

Part 1: How are photographs superior to reality?

Part 2: Why do you think reality might be less appealing to others?

Part 3: Do you prefer photographs or reality? Why?

Essay Topic 3

In its beginnings, photography was thought to be unnatural and disgraceful, though it eventually grew accepted and then revered.

Part 1: Why do you think photography was once thought to be unnatural?

Part 2: Why do you think the attitude toward photography changed over the years?

Part 3: In what ways is photography unnatural today? Why?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 656 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample