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?

Herakles

Geryon's mother

Geryon's brother

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

Photography

Writing

Oil Painting

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

Eros

Fear

Flight

Captivity
5 What is Herakles’ hometown?

Buenos Aires

Miami

Lima

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

Truth

Distance

Deconstructionism

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

Sappho

Emily Dickinson

Stesichoros

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

Uncertainty to Certainty

Fear to Wonder

Life to Death

Innocence to Cynicism
9 What is Geryon’s favorite question?

What is freedom?

Why did Herakles kill Geryon?

What is time made of?

What do I think?
10 What is a palinode?

A paradox

A preface or introduction

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?

12; 20

18; 22

14; 28

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

A painted carousel tiger

Himself

Geryon

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

Angry; prideful

Generous; loving

Dismissive; frustrated

Gentle; understanding
15 What is Herakles and Geryon’s song?

Blue

Tempo

Joy to the World

La Cumparsita
16 What is Herakles and Ancash’s documentary ostensibly about?

Seismic activity

Emily Dickinson

South American volcanoes

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

Faithless

A German term for an individual's social or cultural environment

A German term for human existence
18 Which answer to the question “What is time made of?” does the yellowbeard NOT give Geryon?

Nothing

It is a meaning that we impose upon motion

It is an abstraction

The fourth dimension of reality, where the other three dimensions are spatial
19 What is Ancash’s answer when Geryon asks him what his name means?

light, of little weight

blue

He doesn’t have a chance to answer

eagle
20 What is the image of “a poppy in a breeze” NOT associated with in Autobiography of Red?

Sex

Death

Desire

Blood
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?

Digital photography hasn’t been invented yet

He is motivated by a desire for self-expression

Color is an indispensable part of how Geryon sees the world

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

Black

Red

Blue

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

Ancash; thwarting Geryon and Herakles’ relationship

Geryon’s brother; sexual terror and nightmares

Herakles; sexual frustration

Geryon; his monstrousness
24 Which of these conflicting narratives about Stesichoros’ blindness ISN'T offered as a possibility?

He was always a blind man

Helen blinded him when he liberated her

Hera struck him blind for his impiety

Helen blinded him because he blasphemed 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 ______.”

Loneliness

Wrong love

Heartbrokenness

Mourning

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