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

Blue

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

Herakles

Geryon's brother

Geryon

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?

Captivity

Flight

Fear

Eros
5 What is Herakles’ hometown?

Buenos Aires

Lima

Hades

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

Truth

Religion

Distance

Deconstructionism
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”?

Fear to Wonder

Uncertainty to Certainty

Innocence to Cynicism

Life to Death
9 What is Geryon’s favorite question?

What is freedom?

What do I think?

Why did Herakles kill Geryon?

What is time made of?
10 What is a palinode?

A “counter song”: saying the opposite of what you said before

A paradox

A meaningless platitude

A preface or introduction
11 What does proemium mean?

Premiere or first time

Preface or introduction

Process

Premium or high-quality
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

12; 20

18; 22

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

Ancash

Himself

Geryon

A painted carousel tiger
14 What best describes Herakles’ attitude towards Geryon’s emotionality during sex?

Angry; prideful

Dismissive; frustrated

Gentle; understanding

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

Blue

Tempo

La Cumparsita

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

Soundscapes

Seismic activity

South American volcanoes

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

Faithless

Mocha

A German term for human existence

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?

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?

eagle

light, of little weight

blue

He doesn’t have a chance to answer
20 What is the image of “a poppy in a breeze” NOT associated with in Autobiography of Red?

Blood

Death

Sex

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?

Digital photography hasn’t been invented yet

Color is an indispensable part of how Geryon sees the world

He is motivated by a desire for self-expression

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

Black

Blue

Gold

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

Geryon’s brother; sexual terror and nightmares

Geryon; his monstrousness

Herakles; sexual frustration

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

Helen blinded him when he liberated her

Hera struck him blind for his impiety

Helen blinded him because he blasphemed her

He was always a blind man
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 ______.”

Wrong love

Heartbrokenness

Loneliness

Mourning

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