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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. How did Bataille rebel against his father?

2. What description fits with the "Acephale" group?

3. What did Bataille write while he was working?

4. What principles does Bataille say men associate with the feet in "The Big Toe"?

5. What film does Bataille cite in "The Eye"?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the change in Bataille's early work to his more mature work and values.

2. What claim did Bataille make in "The Lugubrious Game"?

3. What was Bataille's relationship with Andrea Breton?

4. Describe Bataille's birth and family origins.

5. What does Bataille say about surrealism in "The 'Old Mole' and the Prefix Sur in the Words Surhomme [Superman] and Surrealist"?

6. What is the value of intellectual violence in Bataille's work?

7. What were Bataille's early publications?

8. What was Bataille's involvement with "Acephale"?

9. What is expressed in the language of flowers in "The Language of Flowers"?

10. How does the mouth in "Mouth" compare with the eyeball in ''The Eye'?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How has the importance of obscenity in literature changed since Bataille's time? Research the reactions to Bataille and to other writers who used disorienting or profane language during Bataille's time, and describe the changes that have taken place in readers' response to obscene or profane or sacrilegious material.

Essay Topic 2

Bataille is often revolutionary in his claims and expressions. What would a Bataille revolution look like? Would there be leaders, or would it be anarchy? Based on the text, speculate on the outcome of a revolution based on Bataille's work.

Essay Topic 3

Describe the role and importance of creativity in Bataille's thinking about art and politics.

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