View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Whitman wanted people to begin to look at the essential ____________ of a person in order to define a person or object.

2. Arbus admitted to the fact that her own work violated her own ______________ because of its content.

3. Alfred Stieglitz produced photographs which supported Whitman's ideas, termed euphoric _____________.

4. Like surrealism, photography is often about ________ poverty and wealth in its contents or its themes.

5. What is NOT one of the groups of people that Arbus photographed during her career?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why is surrealism not necessarily a universal art form, according to this particular chapter?

2. Who were some of the groups of people who Diane Arbus took pictures of when she was creating portraits?

3. What do photographs do to the scale of an object within the photograph and in real life, according to Sontag?

4. What do photographs of the same subject over the course of many years show about this person or this item?

5. What are the ways in which an American photographer and a European photographer differ?

6. Are people with children more or less likely to own a camera, according to Sontag's own findings?

7. What was the goal of the Farm Service Administration photographic project in 1935 as described in this chapter?

8. What kind of art does Sontag believe photography has become, according to the text in this chapter?

9. Why is photography a democratizing experience, according to Sontag in this particular chapter of the book?

10. How are photographs usually held as definitive evidence in the world, according to Sontag?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Sontag makes the statement that in a person being photographed in a sexual way, it's almost as if it's a violation or a rape.

Part 1: Why do you think a photograph might be like a rape?

Part 2: What happens if a person consents to having their picture taken? Is that still a 'rape' of sorts? Why or why not?

Part 3: Do you feel violated when someone takes a picture of you? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

Sontag also points out that some photographers are moralists, trying to identify a world vision.

Part 1: How do you think photographers are moralists? How does this label work?

Part 2: Why is it important to identify a world vision? Or isn't it?

Part 3: Is photography necessary in order to understand morality? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 3

False photography becomes another important concern in the art of photography, with false caption being included on some photographs.

Part 1: Why do you think some photographers use false captions with their photographs?

Part 2: Do you think it's 'right' to use captions which falsely describe a photograph? Why or why not?

Part 3: How do you think the photograph changes when a false caption is used?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 661 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample