The Uncanny Quizzes

The Uncanny Quiz

1 In which year was "The Uncanny" published?
1920

1919

1917

1918
2 What theoretical model is Freud credited with having developed?
Positivism

The labor theory of value

German Idealism

Psychoanalysis
3 At what point in Freud's career did he write The Uncanny?
At the beginning, when he was more interested in the arts

At the very end, once he'd begun to recant his major ideas

Towards the end, once most of his theoretical concepts were in place

At the very beginning, before he had developed his theories
4 In what way is the uncanny an unusual subject for Freud?
Freud rarely focuses on low-brow art, like horror writing.

Freud rarely writes about the arts.

Freud's writing on art focuses on the visual arts.

Freud's writing on art focuses on the positive effects of art.
5 In what way is the uncanny different from the merely frightening?
There is no substantive difference between the two.

The uncanny is a sense of unease, whereas the frightening is fear for one's safety.

The uncanny can only be experienced in art, while the frightening is experienced in real life.

The frightening is a sense of unease, while the uncanny is fear for one's safety.
6 Why might art be a forbidding subject for someone for Freud?
Freud does not consider art a worthy subject of scholarly inquiry

Freud never received an education in the arts

As a scientist Freud feels art is too subjective

Thinking about art often requires taking social and formal aspects into account
7 According to Freud, how extensive is the body of research on the uncanny?
There are only a few isolated studies.

Extensive in other languages, non-existent in German

Non-existent

Extensive
8 What is Freud's proposed strategy for exploring the uncanny?
A linguistic analysis, followed by a deduction of its causes from a list of examples

A deduction of its causes from a list of examples, followed by a linguistic analysis

A linguistic analysis, a deduction, and a historical overview of the uncanny

A linguistic analysis, a deduction, and an analysis of the uncanny as a purely contemporary phenomenon
9 What hypothesis does Freud offer in the first section?
That the uncanny is the familiar, now returned as something foreign

That the uncanny and the frightening are ultimately the same

That the uncanny occurs in a state of intellectual uncertainty

That the uncanny and the frightening have nothing to do with one another
10 Which of the following authors does Freud NOT draw on in The Uncanny?
Friedrich Nietzsche

Friedrich Schelling

Otto Rank

Ernst Jentsch
11 What does Freud predict the difference in results will be between a linguistic analysis and an examination of examples of the uncanny?
No difference--in both cases the uncanny is the familiar returning as something frightening

The literary examples will yield insights that a linguistic analysis will not.

The linguistic analysis will yield insights a reading of literature will not.

Whatever their difference, they'll need to be supplemented by the case study of a patient
12 Which of the follow is the German word for "uncanny"?
heimlich

Geheimnis

Geheimrat

unheimlich
13 How does Freud characterize his own sensitivity to the uncanny?
Highly sensitive.

Largely insensitive.
14 What definition do the non-German languages considered by Freud offer for the uncanny?
The foreign and frightening

The disgusting

The familiar and frightening

The physically imposing
15 Which of the following is not a definition of the German word "heimlich"
of or related to the house

domesticated

choking, convulsing

hidden, concealed
16 What level of familiarity does Freud assume with his theoretical concepts for his reader?
Fairly high

That of a practicing therapist

None

Very little
17 Why might art be an interesting subject for Freud?
Because he thinks his ideas can be useful for working artists

Because it is the realm of the fantastical and irrational

Because everyone is familiar with certain artworks

Because of the prestige attached to art
18 Why might Freud be interested in linguistic analysis?
He believe that language completely forms our consciousness

He believes language is a repository of shared emotions and assumptions

He believes that the German language is especially rich in suggestive psychological content

He believes that language is objective and fixed, and so ideal for scientific inquiry
19 Which of the following authors is not cited by Freud in his linguistic analysis?
Berthold Auerbach

Johann Pestalozzi

Gottfried Keller

J.W. Goethe
20 Why is The Uncanny unusual as a study of art?
Because the aesthetics of Freud's time tended to focus on contemporary art.

Because aesthetics tended to be more of a social history than psychological analysis

Because the aesthetics of Freud's time tended to focus on classical art.

Because it focuses on an extreme aspect of art, rather than a comprehensive theory
21 In what way is The Uncanny typical of Freud's argumentative style?
In Freud's complete detachment of his own feelings from the subject at hand

In that Freud rarely refers to literature or art.

In Freud's frequent use of irony and aphorism.

In Freud's blurring of the line between extreme cases and normality.
22 Which of the following is uncanny, according to Ernst Jentsch?
Fear of catration

A living doll

Being buried alive

Fear of losing one's eyes
23 Which of the following is uncanny, according to Friedrich Schelling?
The return of something meant to be forgotten.

A living doll

Intellectual uncertainty

Body parts moving on their own
24 Which of the following thinkers investigated the cultural history of the double?
Friedrich Nietzsche

Otto Rank

Ernst Jentsch

Friedrich Schelling
25 Which poet wrote "The Ring of Polycrates"?
Clemens Brentano

Johann Pestalozzi

J.W. Goethe

Friedrich Schiller

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