The Autobiography of Red Quizzes

The Autobiography of Red Quiz 1

1 What color does Herakles dream of Geryon being, proving he doesn’t know Geryon at all?

Red

Yellow

Green

Blue
2 Whose emotional failure does the empty fruit bowl signify?

Geryon

Herakles

Geryon's brother

Geryon's mother
3 Which artistic medium was not a mode of expression for Geryon’s autobiography?

Writing

Sculpture

Photography

Oil Painting
4 What is the “theme” of Geryon’s street art in Herakles’ words?

Eros

Flight

Fear

Captivity
5 What is Herakles’ hometown?

Lima

Miami

Buenos Aires

Hades
6 What is the main topic of conversation between the philosopher Lazer and Geryon?

Distance

Truth

Deconstructionism

Religion
7 Which poet’s work is not influential for Autobiography of Red?

Sappho

Emily Dickinson

Gertrude Stein

Stesichoros
8 Which transition does Geryon try to capture in his photograph “If He Sleep He Shall Do Well”?

Life to Death

Innocence to Cynicism

Fear to Wonder

Uncertainty to Certainty
9 What is Geryon’s favorite question?

What is freedom?

What is time made of?

What do I think?

Why did Herakles kill Geryon?
10 What is a palinode?

A preface or introduction

A paradox

A meaningless platitude

A “counter song”: saying the opposite of what you said before
11 What does proemium mean?

Process

Premiere or first time

Premium or high-quality

Preface or introduction
12 At what age does Geryon fall in love with Herakles, and at what age do they encounter each other again in Buenos Aires?

14; 28

18; 22

12; 20

14; 22
13 Who or what does Herakles attempt to liberate in Buenos Aires?

A painted carousel tiger

Himself

Ancash

Geryon
14 What best describes Herakles’ attitude towards Geryon’s emotionality during sex?

Gentle; understanding

Dismissive; frustrated

Angry; prideful

Generous; loving
15 What is Herakles and Geryon’s song?

Tempo

La Cumparsita

Blue

Joy to the World
16 What is Herakles and Ancash’s documentary ostensibly about?

South American volcanoes

Seismic activity

Emily Dickinson

Soundscapes
17 What is the meaning of “Mitwelt” in “Café Mitwelt,” where Geryon writes postcards from Buenos Aires with scraps of Heidegger on them?

Mocha

A German term for human existence

Faithless

A German term for an individual's social or cultural environment
18 Which answer to the question “What is time made of?” does the yellowbeard NOT give Geryon?

The fourth dimension of reality, where the other three dimensions are spatial

Nothing

It is a meaning that we impose upon motion

It is an abstraction
19 What is Ancash’s answer when Geryon asks him what his name means?

eagle

blue

He doesn’t have a chance to answer

light, of little weight
20 What is the image of “a poppy in a breeze” NOT associated with in Autobiography of Red?

Sex

Death

Blood

Desire
21 Which is NOT an assumption we can make from the detail that Geryon is packing “six boxes of DX 100 color film” for his trip to Buenos Aires?

Color is an indispensable part of how Geryon sees the world

He is motivated by a desire for self-expression

Digital photography hasn’t been invented yet

He expects to be taking all of his photos outside
22 Which color is repeatedly associated with Herakles in Geryon’s perception?

Red

Gold

Blue

Black
23 Who is the “incubus” in this story, and what are they associated with?

Geryon’s brother; sexual terror and nightmares

Herakles; sexual frustration

Geryon; his monstrousness

Ancash; thwarting Geryon and Herakles’ relationship
24 Which of these conflicting narratives about Stesichoros’ blindness ISN'T offered as a possibility?

Hera struck him blind for his impiety

Helen blinded him because he blasphemed her

He was always a blind man

Helen blinded him when he liberated her
25 Fill in the blank of this oft-quoted sentence about Geryon’s heartbreak: “Geryon’s/whole body formed one arch of a cry—upcast to that custom, the human custom/of ______.”

Heartbrokenness

Mourning

Loneliness

Wrong love

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