Question 1

What factor is most likely to have helped lead to the emergence of patriarchy in the wake of the Neolithic Revolution?

Accepted Answer

A)  Men assumed more prominent roles in the growing religious hierarchies of the early civilizations and used these roles to implement a more patriarchal order. 
B)  Men took on prominent roles in agriculture and herding, while women were increasingly homebound, since families could now raise more children. 
C)  Men took the leading roles in hunting and used their physical dominance to claim the lion's share of power in society. 
D)  Women took on new roles as priestesses in growing religious cults but were unable to exert leadership elsewhere in society. 
A)  Men assumed more prominent roles in the growing religious hierarchies of the early civilizations and used these roles to implement a more patriarchal order. 
B)  Men took on prominent roles in agriculture and herding, while women were increasingly homebound, since families could now raise more children. 
C)  Men took the leading roles in hunting and used their physical dominance to claim the lion's share of power in society. 
D)  Women took on new roles as priestesses in growing religious cults but were unable to exert leadership elsewhere in society.

Question 2

Polytheistic societies have

Accepted Answer

A)  many religions. 
B)  many gods. 
C)  many priests. 
D)  many theists. 
A)  many religions. 
B)  many gods. 
C)  many priests. 
D)  many theists.

Question 3

Why did the peoples of Phoenicia, Canaan, and the Sinai Peninsula develop their alphabet around 1600 B.C.E.?

Accepted Answer

A)  They needed to write their laws in several languages. 
B)  They wanted a simpler writing system for their business records. 
C)  They preferred to communicate in writing that foreigners could not read. 
D)  They traded with the Egyptians, who taught them multilingual scripts. 
A)  They needed to write their laws in several languages. 
B)  They wanted a simpler writing system for their business records. 
C)  They preferred to communicate in writing that foreigners could not read. 
D)  They traded with the Egyptians, who taught them multilingual scripts.

Question 4

What do the Mycenaean burial chambers known as tholos tombs reveal about the Mycenaeans?

Accepted Answer

A)  They were prosperous merchants. 
B)  They were repeatedly besieged by invaders throughout their history. 
C)  They were a highly literate culture. 
D)  They were the ancestors of the ancient Greeks. 
A)  They were prosperous merchants. 
B)  They were repeatedly besieged by invaders throughout their history. 
C)  They were a highly literate culture. 
D)  They were the ancestors of the ancient Greeks.

Question 5

What do historians now speculate to be the principal reason for the Hittites' military success?

Accepted Answer

A)  Their use of weapons made from iron 
B)  Their superior use of chariots 
C)  Their monotheistic religion 
D)  Their formation of strategic alliances 
A)  Their use of weapons made from iron 
B)  Their superior use of chariots 
C)  Their monotheistic religion 
D)  Their formation of strategic alliances

Question 6

How did the Neolithic peoples living between and around the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers produce abundant food despite infrequent rainfall and soaring temperatures?

Accepted Answer

A)  They moved their herds to find good grazing. 
B)  They specialized in crops that withstood heat and required little rainfall. 
C)  They dug wells into underground water tables. 
D)  They developed an extensive system of irrigation. 
A)  They moved their herds to find good grazing. 
B)  They specialized in crops that withstood heat and required little rainfall. 
C)  They dug wells into underground water tables. 
D)  They developed an extensive system of irrigation.

Question 7

What Mesopotamian inventions most influenced later mathematical and astronomical developments?

Accepted Answer

A)  Maps of the Near East and the Mediterranean Sea 
B)  Algebra, astronomical charts, and the place-value notation system 
C)  Derivation of the roots of numbers and calculus 
D)  The concept of zero and the decimal point 
A)  Maps of the Near East and the Mediterranean Sea 
B)  Algebra, astronomical charts, and the place-value notation system 
C)  Derivation of the roots of numbers and calculus 
D)  The concept of zero and the decimal point

Question 8

Why do some historians speculate that the Minoans did not engage in warfare among themselves?

Accepted Answer

A)  Minoan religious artifacts feature only goddesses. 
B)  No Minoan weapons have been excavated on Crete. 
C)  Cretan palaces were not walled or fortified. 
D)  Palace artwork depicts only peaceful scenes. 
A)  Minoan religious artifacts feature only goddesses. 
B)  No Minoan weapons have been excavated on Crete. 
C)  Cretan palaces were not walled or fortified. 
D)  Palace artwork depicts only peaceful scenes.

Question 9

Which of the following allowed the Assyrians to thrive by 1900 B.C.E.?

Accepted Answer

A)  A network of trading routes in the Mediterranean 
B)  The development of irrigation systems along the southern Tigris and Euphrates Rivers 
C)  A series of military conquests, including in Palestine 
D)  An elaborate long-distance trading network between Anatolia and Mesopotamia 
A)  A network of trading routes in the Mediterranean 
B)  The development of irrigation systems along the southern Tigris and Euphrates Rivers 
C)  A series of military conquests, including in Palestine 
D)  An elaborate long-distance trading network between Anatolia and Mesopotamia

Question 10

Why was cuneiform developed, and how did it enrich Sumerian culture?

Accepted Answer

Answer would ideally include the followi

Question 11

Why did early civilizations such as the Hittites, the Mycenaeans, and the Egyptian kingdoms come to such violent ends between 1200 and 1000 B.C.E.?

Accepted Answer

Answer would ideally include the followi

Question 12

What examples of class and gender discrimination were found in Hammurabi's code of laws?

Accepted Answer

Answer would ideally include the followi

Question 13

What activity was most central in the lives of Paleolithic peoples?

Accepted Answer

A)  Observing nature 
B)  Fighting enemies 
C)  Educating children 
D)  Searching for food 
A)  Observing nature 
B)  Fighting enemies 
C)  Educating children 
D)  Searching for food

Question 14

Discuss the factors that made possible the emergence of cities and civilizations in Mesopotamia.

Accepted Answer

Answer would ideally include the followi

Question 15

Why did the Akkadians conquer nearby territories?

Accepted Answer

A)  To obtain wealth by acquiring valuable ore mines 
B)  To secure a monopoly on trade 
C)  To keep their crops safe from raiders 
D)  To capture more slaves to work their agricultural holdings 
A)  To obtain wealth by acquiring valuable ore mines 
B)  To secure a monopoly on trade 
C)  To keep their crops safe from raiders 
D)  To capture more slaves to work their agricultural holdings

Question 16

Why was the discovery and use of bronze so important?

Accepted Answer

Answer would ideally include the followi

Question 17

The evolution of hierarchy in human society, the development of agriculture, and the domestication of animals are all patterns of life that emerged from which period?

Accepted Answer

A)  The Second Intermediate Period 
B)  The Bronze Age 
C)  The Stone Age 
D)  The First Intermediate Period 
A)  The Second Intermediate Period 
B)  The Bronze Age 
C)  The Stone Age 
D)  The First Intermediate Period

Question 18

Which New Kingdom pharaoh caused resistance and turmoil when he or she tried to force Egyptians to worship only the god Aten?

Accepted Answer

A)  Menes 
B)  Akhenaten 
C)  Tutankhamun 
D)  Hatshepsut 
A)  Menes 
B)  Akhenaten 
C)  Tutankhamun 
D)  Hatshepsut

Question 19

What environmental change is believed to have led to a radical change in the nomadic Paleolithic way of life?

Accepted Answer

A)  The climate in certain Near East regions became milder and wetter, resulting in increased fertility of the land. 
B)  The swamps along the Mediterranean coast dried up, and land became available for cultivation. 
C)  There was less precipitation, and floods-which had regularly devastated prime growing areas-ceased. 
D)  The glaciers of the last Ice Age advanced, cutting back the land available for cultivation. 
A)  The climate in certain Near East regions became milder and wetter, resulting in increased fertility of the land. 
B)  The swamps along the Mediterranean coast dried up, and land became available for cultivation. 
C)  There was less precipitation, and floods-which had regularly devastated prime growing areas-ceased. 
D)  The glaciers of the last Ice Age advanced, cutting back the land available for cultivation.

Question 20

What did the New Kingdom pharaohs (1569-1081 B.C.E.) do following the expulsion of the Hyksos?

Accepted Answer

A)  They constructed fortifications along the eastern Sinai, the route originally taken by the invading Hyksos. 
B)  They expanded their territory via military campaigns to the south and up and down the eastern Mediterranean coast. 
C)  They built a massive defensive militia by collecting taxes in the form of military service. 
D)  They contracted their territory to the easily defended area between Memphis and Thebes. 
A)  They constructed fortifications along the eastern Sinai, the route originally taken by the invading Hyksos. 
B)  They expanded their territory via military campaigns to the south and up and down the eastern Mediterranean coast. 
C)  They built a massive defensive militia by collecting taxes in the form of military service. 
D)  They contracted their territory to the easily defended area between Memphis and Thebes.

Exam 1: Early Western Civilization, 400,000-1000 B.C.E

What factor is most likely to have helped lead to the emergence of patriarchy in the wake of the Neolithic Revolution?

Polytheistic societies have

Why did the peoples of Phoenicia, Canaan, and the Sinai Peninsula develop their alphabet around 1600 B.C.E.?

What do the Mycenaean burial chambers known as tholos tombs reveal about the Mycenaeans?

What do historians now speculate to be the principal reason for the Hittites' military success?

How did the Neolithic peoples living between and around the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers produce abundant food despite infrequent rainfall and soaring temperatures?

What Mesopotamian inventions most influenced later mathematical and astronomical developments?

Why do some historians speculate that the Minoans did not engage in warfare among themselves?

Which of the following allowed the Assyrians to thrive by 1900 B.C.E.?

Why was cuneiform developed, and how did it enrich Sumerian culture?

Why did early civilizations such as the Hittites, the Mycenaeans, and the Egyptian kingdoms come to such violent ends between 1200 and 1000 B.C.E.?

What examples of class and gender discrimination were found in Hammurabi's code of laws?

What activity was most central in the lives of Paleolithic peoples?

Discuss the factors that made possible the emergence of cities and civilizations in Mesopotamia.

Why did the Akkadians conquer nearby territories?

Why was the discovery and use of bronze so important?

The evolution of hierarchy in human society, the development of agriculture, and the domestication of animals are all patterns of life that emerged from which period?

Which New Kingdom pharaoh caused resistance and turmoil when he or she tried to force Egyptians to worship only the god Aten?

What environmental change is believed to have led to a radical change in the nomadic Paleolithic way of life?

What did the New Kingdom pharaohs (1569-1081 B.C.E.) do following the expulsion of the Hyksos?

Near East Empires and the Reemergence of Civilization in Greece, 1000-500 B.C.E

The Greek Golden Age, C 500-C 400 B.C.E

From the Classical to the Hellenistic World, 400-30 B.C.E

The Rise of Rome and Its Republic, 753-44 B.C.E

The Creation of the Roman Empire, 44 B.C.E-284 C.E

The Transformation of the Roman Empire, 284-600 C.E

The Heirs of Rome: Islam, Byzantium, and Europe, 600-750

From Centralization to Fragmentation, 750-1050

Commercial Quickening and Religious Reform, 1050-1150

The Flowering of the Middle Ages, 1150-1215

The Medieval Synthesis and Its Cracks, 1215-1340

Crisis and Renaissance, 1340-1492

Global Encounters and the Shock of the Reformation, 1492-1560

Wars of Religion and the Clash of Worldviews, 1560-1648

Absolutism, Constitutionalism, and the Search for Order, 1640-1700

The Atlantic System and Its Consequences, 1700-1750

The Promise of Enlightenment, 1750-1789

The Cataclysm of Revolution, 1789-1799

Napoleon and the Revolutionary Legacy, 1800-1830

Industrialization and Social Ferment, 1830-1850

Politics and Culture of the Nation-State, 1850-1870

Empire, Industry, and Everyday Life, 1870-1890

Modernity and the Road to War, 1890-1914

World War I and Its Aftermath, 1914-1929

The Great Depression and World War II, 1929-1945

The Cold War and the Remaking of Europe, 1945-1960s

Postindustrial Society and the End of the Cold War Order, 1960s-1989

A New Globalism, 1989 to the Present

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