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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 is the function of art, according to Emerson?

2. What did Emerson say about communion in "The Lord's Supper"?

3. What does true friendship require, according to Emerson?

4. What, with friendship, creates a "cordial goodwill," according to "Friendship"?

5. Who is the author of "Selected Writings"?

Short Essay Questions

1. According to "New England Reformers", what does a reformist attitude challenge?

2. According to "The Poet", what is the effect of poets speaking the truth? How do poets speak the truth?

3. What is the benefit of friendship, according to "Friendship"? What is the irony in Emerson's essay?

4. According to "Circles", how must humans adapt to the constant state of change that exists?

5. What two problems with communion does Emerson explain at the end of "The Lord's Supper"?

6. According to "Manners", what people are permitted latitude in their manners?

7. What two major failings of the church does Emerson explain in "An Address"?

8. According to "Self-Reliance", what is the relationship between conformity and being a man?

9. What are the categories Emerson divides the world into in his essay "Nature"?

10. How was Plato's dichotomy of the body and soul relevant to Emerson's time?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Explain Emerson's view of love, focusing on the spiritual love he describes in his essay, "Love".

Essay Topic 2

Explain Emerson's view of capitalism. How does this fit into his beliefs in transcendentalism?

Essay Topic 3

Explain Emerson's view of government and politics as it relates to his essay, "Politics".

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