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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. The Brady group's approach to war photography differed from Fenton's approach in which of the following ways?
(a) The Brady group was commissioned by the government, while Fenton was not.
(b) The Brady group photographed the war without government permission, while Fenton had permission for his work.
(c) The Brady group was not commissioned by the government, while Fenton was.
(d) The Brady group had permission to access the fields, while Fenton did not.

2. Which of the following included close-up images of soldiers wounded by war in his/her 1938 film?
(a) Virginia Woolf.
(b) Anonymous.
(c) Abel Gance.
(d) Ernst Friedrich.

3. Fenton's "The Valley of the Shadow of Death" is unique for which of the following reasons?
(a) It requires hours of production and setup.
(b) It is the only photograph in his collection that did not need to be staged.
(c) It provides a uniquely poignant depiction of the horror of war.
(d) It ignores the directions from the War Office.

4. Sontag argues that Woolf's view, like many other "antiwar polemicists" is:
(a) Idealistic.
(b) Generic.
(c) Narrow-minded.
(d) Out-dated.

5. Which technological advancement changed the way war was photographed after World War I?
(a) Transportation.
(b) Lighting equipment.
(c) Lightweight cameras.
(d) Weaponry.

6. Photographic representations of the Vietnam War was essential to promoting:
(a) The anti-war movement.
(b) New methods of communication.
(c) International relations.
(d) Patriotic sentiment.

7. Sontag suggests that the camera always "kept company with _________".
(a) Death.
(b) Art.
(c) War.
(d) Life.

8. Sontag discusses reactions to the attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. Which of the following is NOT a reaction Sontag recalls hearing?
(a) "It felt surreal."
(b) "It felt like a dream."
(c) "It felt like a movie."
(d) "It felt unreal."

9. Fenton received directions from the War Office to do which of the following?
(a) Glorify war through patriotic images.
(b) Avoid photographing the ill, wounded, dying and dead.
(c) Generate propaganda for Britain.
(d) Graphically depict the horrors of war.

10. Paraphrasing Woolf, Sontag states that the privileged class fails to respond to images of war with the appropriate pain. She describes this as a:
(a) Failure of empathy and imagination.
(b) Failure to behave humanely.
(c) Failure of wealth.
(d) Failure of ignorance.

11. Sontag lists which of the following as images that the artist "makes"?
(a) Drawings and paintings.
(b) Etchings and drawings.
(c) Paintings and photographs.
(d) Photographs and etchings.

12. Which famous surrealist thinker does Sontag quote as saying "Beauty will be convulsive, or it will not be?"
(a) Salvador Dali.
(b) Andre Breton.
(c) Virginia Woolf.
(d) Pablo Picasso.

13. Sontag calls for the reader's sympathy for the wounded Taliban soldier whose pain graced the cover of "The New York Times" by suggesting which of the following?
(a) The man's suffering should be a private affair.
(b) The man deserved greater respect for serving his government in war.
(c) The man was a human being.
(d) The man's loved ones would discover the images one day.

14. Sontag argues that creating lasting interest in war image requires which of the following?
(a) A brave star witness.
(b) A large budget from advertising.
(c) A plethora of shocking images.
(d) A reputation for cutting-edge journalism.

15. Sontag argues that the photograph, unlike the written word, is:
(a) Artistically inferior.
(b) Subject to interpretation.
(c) Politically charged.
(d) Always objective.

Short Answer Questions

1. In discussing the difference gender makes in perceptions of war, Sontag agrees with which of the following authors?

2. Audiences may question the veracity of photographs because:

3. Which Virginia Woolf book does Sontag discuss in detail?

4. Sontag notes that images of war most significantly influenced which of the following groups?

5. According to Sontag, why do images of atrocities fail to convey a singular, universal message?

(see the answer keys)

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