Midterm Exam Study Guide

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 12


The midterm exam will cover chapters 1-7 of Women, Art, and Society and this is how it will be constructed:

20 vocabulary terms (match the term to its definition) worth 2 points each.

20 multiple choice questions worth 2 points each

1 essay question focusing on conversations and/or lectures we've had in class worth 20 points.

The 20 vocabulary terms will be pulled directly from the "Terms Of The Day" lists I have given you at the beginning of each class period. Study these lists well enough to be able to match each term on the left side of the page with its particular definition on the right side of the page.

The 20 multiple choice questions come from both the class lectures and from the book. There will be questions on the test that we never addressed in class; they come directly from the book.  The questions in this section will range from those that test how well you understand the definitions of terms to questions about specific artworks that you have seen, to questions about the cultural, religious, and political environments that contributed to the work.

Let me give you four example questions (yes, these will be on the test just as you see them here):

Under feudalism in Middle Ages Europe, the lives of the majority of both men and women (and often children) were organized around _______________.

A. Construction

B. Art

C. Work

D. Leisure

In 15th century Florence, opportunities became more scarce for women artists.  What development contributed to this?

A. There was an increasing separation of life into public and private sectors which valued women in domestic roles.

B. Women were not trained in science or mathematics and were not allowed to not allowed to study life drawing from nude models.

C. Art, science and mathematics became intricately connected.

D. All of the above.

The 18th century writer and intellectual _____________ formulated much of the Enlightenment's view of women artists when he claimed that the recent gains in power and influence of women was “unnatural” and detrimental to the values of the burgeoning middle-class.

A. Jacques-Louis David

B. Jean-Jacques Rousseau 

C. Madame de Pompadour

D. Jean-Antoine Watteau

The best advice I can give you on how to study for this portion of the exam is to comb through all your notes you've taken in class, remind yourself of all the main concepts you've learned, familiarize yourself with all the "Terms Of The Day," and to make sure you have read the material in the book. Pay special attention to how each artwork serves as an example to illustrate a concept. Don't just depend on what I have told you in class.  About 60% of these questions will come directly from lecture, but you don't want to be thrown off by the questions that are based on the book alone.

The essay topic focusing on a combination of the book, lectures, and conversations we had in class will require you to write two or more paragraphs in response and will be chosen from the three topics listed below:

1. Define the Male Gaze, and explain how it was depicted in the work of many male artists of the Renaissance.  Name one female artist you have studied and describe something she did in order to avoid the Male Gaze in her work.
2. During the 15th and 16th centuries, Florence and Bologna had extremely different environments for women artists.  What were the differences which made Florence less conducive for women and Bologna a more liberal environment for women?  How do the self-portraits of Sofonisba Anguissola (Florence) and Artemisia Gentileschi (Bologna) demonstrate these contrasting environments?
3. In the 18th century, Rococo art rose to prominence, due in great part to the salonnières.  Who were the salonnières, what role did they play in the art and intellectual scene in France, and what institutions did the French government and Enlightenment intellectuals put in place that removed their power?

The best way to study for this essay is to carefully read each of these questions and think about what you might write in response.  Each of them is based on lectures and/or a group discussion from class, but they are phrased to make you think critically about certain concepts. This is meant to test how well you have been paying attention to the concepts you've been learning in this class. If you understand the topics and concepts we've been going over in class well enough to apply them to questions that were never directly asked in class, then you have made good use of the first half of your semester. Consult your notes and the book.  Maybe practice what you would write for each question.

Study hard, and good luck to everyone. If you have taken good notes, if you have read the chapters, and if you have spent some time really trying to understand the "Terms Of The Day" then this exam shouldn't be difficult for you.

P.S. The exam will be the only thing we do that day. So, once you're finished with it, you are free to go.