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This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through The Belief in Luck.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. How does Veblen say contestants in sporting events demonstrate their belief in luck?
(a) By offering sacrifices.
(b) By wearing talismans.
(c) By saying prayers to fortune.
(d) By performing rituals.

2. What does Veblen say is evidence of people's concern with their appearances?
(a) They will follow the fashions, no matter how silly.
(b) They will expose as much or as little of themselves as fashion warrants.
(c) They will wear clothing that gets in the way of their work.
(d) They will neglect to protect themselves from the weather.

3. To whom does the requirement of excessive clothing apply most?
(a) Servants.
(b) Women.
(c) Children.
(d) Owners.

4. How does Veblen explain the change of fashion from year to year?
(a) It is a form of conspicuous waste.
(b) It is a form of cultural restlessness.
(c) It is a constantly renewed way to police who is current and who is classic.
(d) It is a shallow form of bourgeois emulation of different aristocratic idols.

5. What factor besides luck affects gambling on sports, according to Veblen?
(a) The ability to turn loss into a gambling victory.
(b) The prestige of the contestants.
(c) The omens that surround the game, such as the weather.
(d) Pride in the strength of the winners.

Short Answer Questions

1. What distinction begins to be drawn as the group around the patron grows?

2. How does Veblen define conspicuous consumption?

3. What do expensive handmade clothes have that cheap imitations do not?

4. Who engages in vicarious consumption?

5. What is reserved for the leisure class?

(see the answer key)

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