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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 a suppressed theme throughout the book but is examined in Chapter 12?

2. What language inhibits the overall artistic aspect of the book according to the author?

3. Complete the following sentence by the author regarding Fourier, "The autonomy of art has its origin in the concealment of ______".

4. How does the author describe the arrangement of the arcades that he is trying to mimic in his text in Chapter 10?

5. What is the name of the man who is the key character in a story by Daumier shown in Chapter 10?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does the author say is American's blind spot in the book?

2. How does the author describe the nature of Fourier's racism in Chapter 8?

3. How does the author define retirement in the book?

4. How does the author describe street fighting methods in Munich?

5. How does the author describe the motivations for women and children to go to work from 1820-1895?

6. How does the author discuss the importance of translations at the end of Chapter 13?

7. What does the author say about Karl Marx's development of Communist beliefs?

8. How does the author first describe philanthropy in the book?

9. How does the author describe the upper class's inability to relate to the lower class?

10. What role does education play in the emergence of bohemians?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Class struggles are a common theme found throughout the book. Part 1.) How does the author use the metaphor of street fighting to convey the class struggles of Europe? Part 2.) What boundaries does the upper class set up to ensure the failure of the lower classes? Part 3.) How do those in the lower class try and overcome their low status and become successful?

Essay Topic 2

The arcades play a role throughout much of the book, but their presence should be taken for more than face value. Part 1.) Why does the author try and mimic his writing to the nature of the arcades with sparse bits of information given to create a whole? Part 2.) What might the author wish for the arcades to symbolize in regards to society in the 19th century? Part 3.) Does the author wish for the arcades to serve as a vehicle to tell the story of European society's evolution over time?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the concept of fantasy presented in the book. What role did the creation of fantasy within areas like the arcades play in the way others viewed society in Europe? Why did vendors feel the need to create such fantasy?

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