Western Cultures, McGuire
Semester Exam Review
Consider the following question(s) as you prepare for your Semester Final. Remember, you are allowed 1 page (front and back) or 2 pages one-sided of notes for the final.
1. What do you think were the major causes of the European Renaissance? Explain your answer.
2. What was one important and lasting result of the invention of the printing press? Explain why it came about.
3. Why do you think some of the German princes supported the pope while others supported Luther's ideas?
4. What inspired Europeans to begin exploring foreign lands in the 1400s? What made it possible for them to begin these explorations?
5. What were the chief reasons that the French, English, and
Dutch each were interested in
6. What were some of the ways in which the Atlantic slave trade affected African and American societies from the 1400s to the 1800s?
7. What was mercantilism? How and why did it encourage
European colonization of the
8. Contrasting
How did slavery in the
9. Recognizing
Effects What effects did the establishment of colonial empires in the
10. What is an absolute monarch? How was absolutism encouraged by the belief in the divine right of monarchs and the upheavals of the times?
11. How did religious and political turmoil in
12. What were some of the most important results of the Thirty Years' War?
13. Why did Peter the Great decide to westernize
14. What were some of the most important political changes that resulted from the Glorious Revolution?
15. Synthesizing How did the events
of the English Civil War, the Restoration, and the Glorious Revolution lead to
the system of government that
16. What was so revolutionary about the Scientific Revolution? In your answer, be sure to discuss the scientific method.
17. Contrasting What is the scientific method? How does it differ from the methods used by scholars in medieval times?
18. What were some of the most important effects of the Enlightenment?
19. In what ways did the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights reflect Enlightenment ideas? In your answer, be sure to discuss the system of checks and balances and the federal system.
20. Recognizing Effects What influence did the ideas of John Locke have on the Declaration of Independence? Support your answer with specific details.
21. Synthesizing How did the ideas of Locke, Montesquieu, Rousseau, Voltaire, and Beccaria influence the U.S. Constitution?
22. Analyzing Causes; Recognizing Effects Why did the people of the Third Estate revolt?
23. What did the Congress of Vienna accomplish that had real
and lasting value for the welfare of Europe, and which of its accomplishments
were harmful to
24. Analyzing Causes; Recognizing Effects What events led to Napoleon's downfall?
25. Analyzing Causes What made
18th-century
26. In your opinion, which was most important influence in setting the stage for World War I-nationalism, imperialism, militarism, or the alliance system? Explain.
27. Why did a stalemate develop on the Western Front during World War I?
28. Why did
29. What were some of the most important political and social costs of World War I?
30. Drawing Conclusions What were the reasons for the extensive loss of life and property damage in World War I?
31. Analyzing Causes;
Recognizing Effects Why did the
32. Evaluating Decisions What mistakes were made by the leaders who made the Treaty of Versailles?
33. Synthesizing World War I is considered a major turning
point in history. How did the war change the nature of warfare, the map of