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3. After the Black Death, all of the following occurred except:
A. a massive peasant insurrection.
B. a rise in wages for the survivors.
C. the development of the model for modern hospitals.
D. famines.
4. One of the most important consequences of the Hundred Years' War was that:
A. the Parliament widened its powers in England.
B. England and France entered an extended period of peace and solidarity.
C. both England and France began to tax the clergy.
D. French armies ravaged England.
5. The cause of the "Babylonian Captivity" of the Roman Catholic church was:
A. the transference of the pope from Rome to Avignon, where he was regarded as a tool of
France.
B. the failure of Pope Boniface VIII to oppose the plans of the kings of England and France to tax
church lands.
C. the increasing power of the Ottoman Turks, who captured Rome and forced the pope to reside
at Babylon in Mesopotamia.
D. the Protestant Reformation.

6. During the first half of the fifteenth century, the conciliar movement in the Catholic church:
A. tried to reunite the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches.
B. unsuccessfully attempted to conciliate the protestants of Germany and Bohemia.
C. succeeded, after a long struggle, in reducing the pope's authority to that of a constitutional
monarch and ended the practices of simony and nepotism.
D. reunited Roman Catholicism, extirpated heresy, and sought to reform the church from top to
bottom.
7. All the following statements regarding the Italian Renaissance of the fifteenth century are true
except:
A. the word "Renaissance" refers to the rebirth in Europe of the ideals and culture of Greco-
Roman civilization.
B. the Renaissance witnessed the birth of the modern natural sciences.
C. an almost purely secular attitude first appeared in Italy.
D. the Renaissance developed for the first time the conception of "modern" and "ancient" times
as distinct from the Middle Ages.

8. Which one of the following factors helps explain why the Renaissance developed first in Italy?
A. The towns of Italy were the most economically active of all the towns that appeared in Europe
in the Middle Ages.
B. The Black Death was less severe in Italy than elsewhere.
C. The power of the pope in Rome assured the whole Italian peninsula of relative peace and
stability.
D. The Holy Roman Empire's control over north and central Italy ensured relative peace and
stability.
9. All of the following statements about fifteenth century Florence are true except:
A. it was a moderately large Italian city-state.
B. it was dominated by wealthy landowners who exported Chianti wine throughout Europe.
C. it produced an amazing number of the leading figures of the Italian Renaissance.
D. its leading family, which unofficially ruled the city, was the Medici.
10. In the fifteenth century, a new conception of life arose in Italy involving all of the following
attitudes except:
A. a sense of the vast range of human powers.
B. an appreciation for civic consciousness and individualism.
C. the enjoyment of wealth.
D. admiration for the life of contemplation and meditation.

11. How did the art of Renaissance Italy differ from Medieval art?
A. The space in Renaissance art tended to be indeterminate.
B. Medieval artisans created freestanding sculptures while the Renaissance sculptors filled the
niches and portals of the great cathedrals with statues.
C. Renaissance art demonstrated a greater appreciation for concrete realities.
D. Renaissance art expressed private fantasies and the working of the unconscious.
12. Humanism, the key literary movement of Renaissance Italy, involved all of the following except:
A. the beginning of literature in its modern sense.
B. a cult of antiquity.
C. an interest in political and civic questions.
D. an interest in learning Arabic.
13. One reason Petrarch was important for the Renaissance was because:
A. he raised considerations of moral philosophy in his writings without subordinating them to
religious belief.
B. he denounced St. Augustine, whose writings formed one of the great pillars of medieval
civilization.
C. he was the first to write in Italian rather than Latin.
D. he championed law and the legal profession.

14. Florentine became the standard form of the Italian language:
A. because of a papal bull.
B. with the popularization of the dialect through literary texts like Dante's Divine
Comedy. C. as humanists rejected the learning of ancient Greece and Rome.
D. because Cicero advocated its use.
15. Medieval schooling during the Renaissance:
A. encouraged women to study in universities.
B. grouped students by social ranking rather than age or level of achievement.
C. grouped students by age and level of achievement.
D. discouraged the study of languages.
16. As revealed in Castiglione's Book of the Courtier, the ideal Renaissance man:
A. should be proficient in sports and arms, and not waste time studying dead languages like
Greek and Latin.
B. should be familiar with literary and other subjects, converse with ease, and dance well.
C. should be extremely well-educated in order to win arguments through displays of learning.
D. should avoid most social gatherings and political activities in order to cultivate and refine his
intellect without interference.
17. Marriage in Renaissance Italy:
A. was often based upon love rather than family alliances intended to enhance social rankings.
B. usually took place between men and women of approximately the same age.
C. was usually based upon the negotiations of parents hoping to enhance their respective social
positions.
D. encouraged greater gender equality.
18. Niccolò Machiavelli's writings on politics were significant because:
A. he "emancipated" politics from theology and moral philosophy.
B. he reinforced the idea that political rulers were subject to moral considerations.
C. he discouraged the secularization of politics.
D. he discouraged political rulers from acting in their own interests.
19. How did the northern Renaissance differ from that in Italy?
A. The break with the Middle Ages was more distinct in the north.
B. In the northern Renaissance, the religious element was much stronger.
C. In the northern Renaissance, painting techniques were less innovative.
D. All of the above.

20. One reason for the decline of Italy and the Renaissance in the sixteenth century was that:
A. Italy remained divided into small city-states rather than unified in a large state.
B. the Turks invaded Italy, sacking Rome in 1527.
C. the English seized control of the straits of Gibraltar, blocking Italian shipping and giving the
northern countries access to the Mediterranean.
D. the Pope, in alliance with the Kingdom of Naples, conquered most of the peninsula.
21. All of the following are true about the growth of religious mysticism in northern Europe during the
fourteenth and fifteenth centuries except:
A. mystics found no need to join other people in open worship.
B. mystics did not want sacraments to be administered by priests.
C. mystics rebelled against the church.
D. some mystics' ideas later influenced Martin Luther.
22. Erasmus of Rotterdam was the greatest of all the:
A. religious mystics.
B. northern humanists.
C. Renaissance popes.
D. condottieri.
23. The "New Monarchs" of the fifteenth century:
A. lost the support of townsmen but gained the favor of the serfs.
B. favored Roman law over common law.
C. fought for the restoration of the historic liberties of the feudal classes.
D. relied increasingly upon the nobility to provide them with armies.
24. All of the following statements are true about the "new monarchies" of the late fifteenth century
except:
A. they pursued strategies of centralizing their authority and power.
B. townspeople preferred the increased authority of the "new monarchs" because parliaments
usually served the interests of the nobility.
C. they laid the foundations for the national or territorial state.
D. on the Continent, they used the older precedent of common law to entrench their authority.
25. One reason the French kings never adopted Protestantism was that:
A. they were satisfied by the reforms enacted by the 1511 Council of Pisa.
B. the pope promised Francis I that he would summon a new council to reform the church.
C. they already controlled the French church by virtue of having established the right to appoint
bishops.
D. there were never more than a handful of protestants in France.

26. The new monarchy of Spain built up its power:
A. by creating uniform political and administrative institutions for Aragon and Castile.
B. by forbidding the nobility to maintain private armies that displayed their own livery or insignia.
C. by working through the institutions of the Catholic church to impose religious conformity on the
entire region.
D. by dismissing the Spanish estates general.
27. In Spain, the terms "Morisco" and "Marrano" referred to:
A. Christians of Moorish and Jewish backgrounds.
B. Christians of Calvinist and Lutheran backgrounds.
C. Islamic invaders from Morocco and New Spain.
D. the former residents of the small Islamic states of southern Spain.
28. Which of the following did not form a part of the inheritance of Charles V, ruler of the largest
European empire since imperial Rome?
A. Austria
B. Netherlands
C. France
D. Castile and Aragon in Spain

29. The factors that led to the Protestant Reformation include all of the following except:
A. the decline of the church.
B. the division of Germany.
C. the growth of the "new monarchy."
D. the fears felt in Europe, especially in Spain, of possible absorption by the French Valois.
30. According the Martin Luther, the authority to define true Christian belief was located in:
A. the church council.
B. the pope.
C. the priesthood.
D. each individual's own conscience.
31. When the German peasants rose in revolt in 1524, demanding social and economic reforms,
Luther:
A. urged the princes to suppress them with the sword.
B. called for the adoption of all the peasants' demands.
C. ignored the issue, and concentrated on religious questions.
D. succeeded in persuading the princes to make some concessions.

32. The Peace of Augsburg, in 1555, .
A. was a complete victory for Catholics over Lutherans
B. provided for individual freedom of choice in Germany
C. was a victory for Lutheranism and states' rights
D. gave Catholic bishops complete control over church lands
33. John Calvin addressed the world in the severe, logical style of a:
A. statesman.
B. lawyer.
C. professor.
D. merchant.
34. Calvin introduced an element of lay control over his church, but he did not:
A. break the monopoly of priestly power.
B. refuse to recognize the subordination of church to state.
C. promote secularization.
D. try to Christianize all of society.

35. Calvinism, despite its aristocratic outlook, contributed to the development of what later became
democracy by:
A. allowing the possibility that all people, regardless of social rank, might be predestined for
salvation.
B. tolerating, although not necessarily approving, radical religious dissenters, such as Michael
Servetus.
C. developing a type of self-government for the church.
D. A and B
36. The English Reformation was peculiar because the government broke with the Roman church:
A. before adopting any Protestant principles.
B. after the pope took the side of the nobility against the king.
C. after Protestantism had already come to dominate English religious life.
D. after it took the side of France in a political dispute.
37. Under Elizabeth, the Church of England:
A. adopted a Protestant liturgy and theology.
B. became increasingly Calvinist.
C. removed its bishops from the House of Lords.
D. all of the above.

38. How did the policies of Henry VIII affect the English aristocracy?
A. They increased aristocratic influence by decreeing the supremacy of the House of Lords over
the Commons.
B. They undermined the aristocracy by seizing its property.
C. They strengthened the aristocracy's holdings by grants of confiscated monastic lands.
D. They undermined the aristocracy's power by arresting and executing pro-Catholic nobles.
39. Protestantism impacted family life by:
A. discouraging marriage among the clergy.
B. encouraging marriage among both the clergy and lay people.
C. encouraging the cloistered life among women.
D. significantly transforming the role of women in church and society.
40. The Catholic movement corresponding to and in opposition to the rise of Protestantism was
known as the:
A. Papist Revolt.
B. Catholic or Counter Reformation.
C. Jesuit movement.
D. Vatican movement.
41. The Council of Trent:
A. affirmed virtually all of the Catholic practices rejected by Protestants.
B. adopted many Protestant policies but rejected others.
C. asserted that church councils constituted an authority superior to that of the pope.
D. proclaimed the pope's infallibility.
42. All of the following were Catholic responses to the rise of Protestantism except:
A. the founding of new religious orders.
B. the use of the Jesuits as a missionary force.
C. the use of the Inquisition to reinforce religious conformity.
D. Catholic crusades within Europe against Protestants.
43. What socio-economic, political, and environmental developments in the fourteenth century
undermined the prosperity and stability of medieval society?

44. What was the significance of the Babylonian Captivity and the Great Schism? What did both
events indicate about problems within the Roman Catholic church?
45. How did conceptions of the human experience during the Renaissance compare with early
Christian ideas?
46. Compare and contrast the Italian Renaissance with the northern Renaissance. What were the
lasting contributions of each?

47. How did the secular philosophy of the Renaissance influence the arts?
48. How did Machiavelli's political philosophy reflect the political weaknesses of Renaissance Italy?
How did Machiavelli propose to resolve those weaknesses?
49. What strategies did the Tudors, the Valois, and Ferdinand and Isabella share in undertaking the
consolidation of their rule? How did the Habsburg Empire present different challenges to
consolidation than those facing the other major European monarchies?

50. What beliefs did the Protestant groups have in common? How did they differ? What were the
bases for their differences?
51. The Roman Catholic church had accommodated reformers before Martin Luther. Why could it not
do so between 1515 and 1560?
52. What was the role of Lutheranism in the social upheavals that occurred in Germany on the heels
of Luther's revolt against Rome? How did Luther react to the demands of those participating in
the upheavals?
53. Compare and contrast the impact of the Renaissance on the lives of women to that of the
Reformation.
54. Why did the Renaissance, the rebirth of the ideals and achievements of ancient Greece and
Rome, occur first in Italy?
55. Why did mysticism not constitute as decisive a break with the Catholic Church as did
Protestantism?
56. What was the relationship between the new ideas about the human experience that emerged
during the Italian Renaissance and the economic activities of the Italian city-states?
57. Explain the origins of the Church of England.
58. Describe life in Calvin's Geneva. Why was it considered a model community?
59. What were the problems and issues facing the Council of Trent? Did it extensively reform the
Roman Catholic Church?
60. How did the Jesuits act to counter the spread of Protestantism? What role did they play in
European society in the centuries following their founding?
61.
Under Charles V, the Habsburg Empire controlled much of Europe. How effectively did Charles
rule in the far-flung reaches of his empire? Were European fears of Habsburg predominance
justified?
62.
How did the Protestant Reformation impact the Habsburg Empire? What was the relationship
between Protestantism and resistance to Habsburg rule?

2 Key
1. Secularization, a process which transformed the civilization of Latin Christendom prior to any
(p. 49)
other world civilization, means:
A. the rejection of ancestral religions.
B. the development of a variety of interests and activities outside the sphere of religion.
C. the development of industrial technology but the discouragement of natural science.
D. the encouragement of natural philosophy and science, but the neglect or even rejection of
industrial technology.
Accessibility: Keyboard Navigation

Palmer - Chapter 02 #1
2. During the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, Medieval Europe suffered all of the following
(p. 49-50)
disasters except:
A. the Ottoman Turks besieged Constantinople.
B. the Protestant religious revolution undermined the authority of the papacy and of the
Roman Catholic church.
C. the Black Death wiped out about a third of Europe's population.
D. the Arabs conquered Spain and Italy.

3. After the Black Death, all of the following occurred except:
(p. 50-51)
A. a massive peasant insurrection.
B. a rise in wages for the survivors.
C. the development of the model for modern hospitals.
D. famines.

4. One of the most important consequences of the Hundred Years' War was that:
(p. 52)
A. the Parliament widened its powers in England.
B. England and France entered an extended period of peace and solidarity.
C. both England and France began to tax the clergy.
D. French armies ravaged England.

5. The cause of the "Babylonian Captivity" of the Roman Catholic church was:
(p. 52)
A. the transference of the pope from Rome to Avignon, where he was regarded as a tool of
France.
B. the failure of Pope Boniface VIII to oppose the plans of the kings of England and France to
tax church lands.
C. the increasing power of the Ottoman Turks, who captured Rome and forced the pope to
reside at Babylon in Mesopotamia.
D. the Protestant Reformation.

6. During the first half of the fifteenth century, the conciliar movement in the Catholic church:
(p. 54-55)
A. tried to reunite the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches.
B. unsuccessfully attempted to conciliate the protestants of Germany and Bohemia.
C. succeeded, after a long struggle, in reducing the pope's authority to that of a constitutional
monarch and ended the practices of simony and nepotism.
D. reunited Roman Catholicism, extirpated heresy, and sought to reform the church from top
to bottom.

7. All the following statements regarding the Italian Renaissance of the fifteenth century are true
(p. 56) except:
A. the word "Renaissance" refers to the rebirth in Europe of the ideals and culture of Greco-
Roman civilization.
B. the Renaissance witnessed the birth of the modern natural sciences.
C. an almost purely secular attitude first appeared in Italy.
D. the Renaissance developed for the first time the conception of "modern" and "ancient"
times as distinct from the Middle Ages.

8. Which one of the following factors helps explain why the Renaissance developed first in Italy?
(p. 56)
A. The towns of Italy were the most economically active of all the towns that appeared in
Europe in the Middle Ages.
B. The Black Death was less severe in Italy than elsewhere.
C. The power of the pope in Rome assured the whole Italian peninsula of relative peace and
stability.
D. The Holy Roman Empire's control over north and central Italy ensured relative peace and
stability.

9. All of the following statements about fifteenth century Florence are true except:
(p. 57)
A. it was a moderately large Italian city-state.
B. it was dominated by wealthy landowners who exported Chianti wine throughout Europe.
C. it produced an amazing number of the leading figures of the Italian Renaissance.
D. its leading family, which unofficially ruled the city, was the Medici.

10. In the fifteenth century, a new conception of life arose in Italy involving all of the following
(p. 58-59)
attitudes except:
A. a sense of the vast range of human powers.
B. an appreciation for civic consciousness and individualism.
C. the enjoyment of wealth.
D. admiration for the life of contemplation and meditation.

11. How did the art of Renaissance Italy differ from Medieval art?
(p. 60-61)
A. The space in Renaissance art tended to be indeterminate.
B. Medieval artisans created freestanding sculptures while the Renaissance sculptors filled
the niches and portals of the great cathedrals with statues.
C. Renaissance art demonstrated a greater appreciation for concrete realities.
D. Renaissance art expressed private fantasies and the working of the unconscious.

12. Humanism, the key literary movement of Renaissance Italy, involved all of the following
(p. 61-63)
except:
A. the beginning of literature in its modern sense.
B. a cult of antiquity.
C. an interest in political and civic questions.
D. an interest in learning Arabic.

13. One reason Petrarch was important for the Renaissance was because:
(p. 63)
A. he raised considerations of moral philosophy in his writings without subordinating them to
religious belief.
B. he denounced St. Augustine, whose writings formed one of the great pillars of medieval
civilization.
C. he was the first to write in Italian rather than Latin.
D. he championed law and the legal profession.

14. Florentine became the standard form of the Italian language:
(p. 63)
A. because of a papal bull.
B. with the popularization of the dialect through literary texts like Dante's Divine
Comedy. C. as humanists rejected the learning of ancient Greece and Rome.
D. because Cicero advocated its use.

15. Medieval schooling during the Renaissance:

(p. 65)
A. encouraged women to study in universities.
B. grouped students by social ranking rather than age or level of achievement.
C. grouped students by age and level of achievement.
D. discouraged the study of languages.

16. As revealed in Castiglione's Book of the Courtier, the ideal Renaissance man:
(p. 66)
A. should be proficient in sports and arms, and not waste time studying dead languages like
Greek and Latin.
B. should be familiar with literary and other subjects, converse with ease, and dance well.
C. should be extremely well-educated in order to win arguments through displays of learning.
D. should avoid most social gatherings and political activities in order to cultivate and refine his
intellect without interference.

17. Marriage in Renaissance Italy:

(p. 67)
A. was often based upon love rather than family alliances intended to enhance social
rankings.
B. usually took place between men and women of approximately the same age.
C. was usually based upon the negotiations of parents hoping to enhance their respective
social positions.
D. encouraged greater gender equality.

18. Niccolò Machiavelli's writings on politics were significant because:

(p. 69)
A. he "emancipated" politics from theology and moral philosophy.
B. he reinforced the idea that political rulers were subject to moral considerations.
C. he discouraged the secularization of politics.
D. he discouraged political rulers from acting in their own interests.

19. How did the northern Renaissance differ from that in Italy?
(p. 70)
A. The break with the Middle Ages was more distinct in the north.
B. In the northern Renaissance, the religious element was much stronger.
C. In the northern Renaissance, painting techniques were less innovative.
D. All of the above.

20. One reason for the decline of Italy and the Renaissance in the sixteenth century was that:
(p. 70)
A. Italy remained divided into small city-states rather than unified in a large state.
B. the Turks invaded Italy, sacking Rome in 1527.
C. the English seized control of the straits of Gibraltar, blocking Italian shipping and giving the
northern countries access to the Mediterranean.
D. the Pope, in alliance with the Kingdom of Naples, conquered most of the peninsula.

21. All of the following are true about the growth of religious mysticism in northern Europe during
(p. 72)
the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries except:
A. mystics found no need to join other people in open worship.
B. mystics did not want sacraments to be administered by priests.
C. mystics rebelled against the church.
D. some mystics' ideas later influenced Martin Luther.

22. Erasmus of Rotterdam was the greatest of all the:

(p. 72)
A. religious mystics.
B. northern humanists.
C. Renaissance popes.
D. condottieri.

23. The "New Monarchs" of the fifteenth century:

(p. 74)
A. lost the support of townsmen but gained the favor of the serfs.
B. favored Roman law over common law.
C. fought for the restoration of the historic liberties of the feudal classes.
D. relied increasingly upon the nobility to provide them with armies.

24. All of the following statements are true about the "new monarchies" of the late fifteenth century
(p. 74) except:
A. they pursued strategies of centralizing their authority and power.
B. townspeople preferred the increased authority of the "new monarchs" because parliaments
usually served the interests of the nobility.
C. they laid the foundations for the national or territorial state.
D. on the Continent, they used the older precedent of common law to entrench their authority.

25. One reason the French kings never adopted Protestantism was that:
(p. 75)
A. they were satisfied by the reforms enacted by the 1511 Council of Pisa.
B. the pope promised Francis I that he would summon a new council to reform the church.
C. they already controlled the French church by virtue of having established the right to
appoint bishops.
D. there were never more than a handful of protestants in France.

26. The new monarchy of Spain built up its power:
(p. 75)
A. by creating uniform political and administrative institutions for Aragon and Castile.
B. by forbidding the nobility to maintain private armies that displayed their own livery or
insignia.
C. by working through the institutions of the Catholic church to impose religious conformity on
the entire region.
D. by dismissing the Spanish estates general.

27. In Spain, the terms "Morisco" and "Marrano" referred to:

(p. 76)
A. Christians of Moorish and Jewish backgrounds.
B. Christians of Calvinist and Lutheran backgrounds.
C. Islamic invaders from Morocco and New Spain.
D. the former residents of the small Islamic states of southern Spain.

28. Which of the following did not form a part of the inheritance of Charles V, ruler of the largest
(p. 77) European empire since imperial Rome?
A. Austria
B. Netherlands
C. France
D. Castile and Aragon in Spain

29. The factors that led to the Protestant Reformation include all of the following except:
(p. 77)
A. the decline of the church.
B. the division of Germany.
C. the growth of the "new monarchy."
D. the fears felt in Europe, especially in Spain, of possible absorption by the French Valois.

30. According the Martin Luther, the authority to define true Christian belief was located in:
(p. 80)
A. the church council.
B. the pope.
C. the priesthood.
D. each individual's own conscience.

31. When the German peasants rose in revolt in 1524, demanding social and economic reforms,
(p. 82) Luther:
A. urged the princes to suppress them with the sword.
B. called for the adoption of all the peasants' demands.
C. ignored the issue, and concentrated on religious questions.
D. succeeded in persuading the princes to make some concessions.

32. The Peace of Augsburg, in 1555, .

(p. 84)
A. was a complete victory for Catholics over Lutherans
B. provided for individual freedom of choice in Germany
C. was a victory for Lutheranism and states' rights
D. gave Catholic bishops complete control over church lands

33. John Calvin addressed the world in the severe, logical style of a:
(p. 85)
A. statesman.
B. lawyer.
C. professor.
D. merchant.

34. Calvin introduced an element of lay control over his church, but he did not:
(p. 86)
A. break the monopoly of priestly power.
B. refuse to recognize the subordination of church to state.
C. promote secularization.
D. try to Christianize all of society.

35. Calvinism, despite its aristocratic outlook, contributed to the development of what later
(p. 87)
became democracy by:
A. allowing the possibility that all people, regardless of social rank, might be predestined for
salvation.
B. tolerating, although not necessarily approving, radical religious dissenters, such as Michael
Servetus.
C. developing a type of self-government for the church.
D. A and B

36. The English Reformation was peculiar because the government broke with the Roman
(p. 88) church:
A. before adopting any Protestant principles.
B. after the pope took the side of the nobility against the king.
C. after Protestantism had already come to dominate English religious life.
D. after it took the side of France in a political dispute.

37. Under Elizabeth, the Church of England:

(p. 90-91)
A. adopted a Protestant liturgy and theology.
B. became increasingly Calvinist.
C. removed its bishops from the House of Lords.
D. all of the above.

38. How did the policies of Henry VIII affect the English aristocracy?
(p. 88)
A. They increased aristocratic influence by decreeing the supremacy of the House of Lords
over the Commons.
B. They undermined the aristocracy by seizing its property.
C. They strengthened the aristocracy's holdings by grants of confiscated monastic lands.
D. They undermined the aristocracy's power by arresting and executing pro-Catholic nobles.

39. Protestantism impacted family life by:

(p. 92)
A. discouraging marriage among the clergy.
B. encouraging marriage among both the clergy and lay people.
C. encouraging the cloistered life among women.
D. significantly transforming the role of women in church and society.

40. The Catholic movement corresponding to and in opposition to the rise of Protestantism was
(p. 93)
known as the:
A. Papist Revolt.
B. Catholic or Counter Reformation.
C. Jesuit movement.
D. Vatican movement.

41. The Council of Trent:

(p. 94)
A. affirmed virtually all of the Catholic practices rejected by Protestants.
B. adopted many Protestant policies but rejected others.
C. asserted that church councils constituted an authority superior to that of the pope.
D. proclaimed the pope's infallibility.

42. All of the following were Catholic responses to the rise of Protestantism except:
(p. 95-97)
A. the founding of new religious orders.
B. the use of the Jesuits as a missionary force.
C. the use of the Inquisition to reinforce religious conformity.
D. Catholic crusades within Europe against Protestants.

43. What socio-economic, political, and environmental developments in the fourteenth century
undermined the prosperity and stability of medieval society?
Answers will vary
44. What was the significance of the Babylonian Captivity and the Great Schism? What did both
events indicate about problems within the Roman Catholic church?
Answers will vary

45. How did conceptions of the human experience during the Renaissance compare with early
Christian ideas?
Answers will vary
46. Compare and contrast the Italian Renaissance with the northern Renaissance. What were the
lasting contributions of each?
Answers will vary
47. How did the secular philosophy of the Renaissance influence the arts?
Answers will vary

48. How did Machiavelli's political philosophy reflect the political weaknesses of Renaissance
Italy? How did Machiavelli propose to resolve those weaknesses?
Answers will vary
49. What strategies did the Tudors, the Valois, and Ferdinand and Isabella share in undertaking
the consolidation of their rule? How did the Habsburg Empire present different challenges to
consolidation than those facing the other major European monarchies?
Answers will vary
50. What beliefs did the Protestant groups have in common? How did they differ? What were the
bases for their differences?
Answers will vary

51. The Roman Catholic church had accommodated reformers before Martin Luther. Why could it
not do so between 1515 and 1560?
Answers will vary
52. What was the role of Lutheranism in the social upheavals that occurred in Germany on the
heels of Luther's revolt against Rome? How did Luther react to the demands of those
participating in the upheavals?
Answers will vary
53. Compare and contrast the impact of the Renaissance on the lives of women to that of the
Reformation.
Answers will vary

54. Why did the Renaissance, the rebirth of the ideals and achievements of ancient Greece and
Rome, occur first in Italy?
Answers will vary
55. Why did mysticism not constitute as decisive a break with the Catholic Church as did
Protestantism?
Answers will vary
56. What was the relationship between the new ideas about the human experience that emerged
during the Italian Renaissance and the economic activities of the Italian city-states?
Answers will vary

57. Explain the origins of the Church of England.
Answers will vary
58. Describe life in Calvin's Geneva. Why was it considered a model community?
Answers will vary
59. What were the problems and issues facing the Council of Trent? Did it extensively reform the
Roman Catholic Church?
Answers will vary
60. How did the Jesuits act to counter the spread of Protestantism? What role did they play in
European society in the centuries following their founding?
Answers will vary

61.
Under Charles V, the Habsburg Empire controlled much of Europe. How effectively did
Charles rule in the far-flung reaches of his empire? Were European fears of Habsburg
predominance justified?
Answers will vary

62.
How did the Protestant Reformation impact the Habsburg Empire? What was the relationship
between Protestantism and resistance to Habsburg rule?
Answers will vary

2 Summary
Category # of Questions
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The Project Gutenberg eBook of Il tallone di ferro
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Title: Il tallone di ferro
Author: Jack London
Translator: Gian Dàuli
Release date: November 16, 2023 [eBook #72139]
Language: Italian
Original publication: Milano: Modernissima, 1925
Credits: Barbara Magni and the Online Distributed Proofreading

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*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IL TALLONE

DI FERRO ***
IL TALLONE DI FERRO
JACK LONDON
IL
TALLONE DI FERRO
ROMANZO DI PREVISIONE SOCIALE
A cura di GIAN DÀULI
MODERNISSIMA
MILANO — Via Vivaio, 10
PROPRIETÀ LETTERARIA RISERVATA
Stab. Tipo-Lit. FED. SACCHETTI & C. — Via Zecca
Vecchia, 7 — Milano (7)
INDICE
«E io so che un terzo di tutto il
genere umano sulla terra perirà
nella Grande Guerra, e un terzo
perirà nella Grande Distruzione,
ma l’ultimo terzo vivrà nel Grande
Millennio, che sarà il Regno di Dio
sulla Terra».
Selma Lagerfel
Jack London scrisse il Tallone di ferro nel 1907 [1]. Dopo un attento
esame del disordine economico del secolo XIX e delle condizioni di
lotta tra plutocrazia e proletariato egli, seguendo i maggiori uomini di
scienza e statisti del suo tempo, comprese come un inesorabile
dilemma si dibattesse nella coscienza della Società contemporanea
oppressa dagli armamenti e da una produzione inadeguata,
eccessiva ed artificiosa insieme: la rivoluzione, o la guerra.
Davanti a questo terribile dilemma, la sua grande anima di poeta, di
sognatore e di ribelle previde l’avvenire, e visse, con le creature
immortali della immaginazione, parte del grande dramma che
culminò, sette anni dopo, nella guerra mondiale.
Ma più che la guerra, il London previde la rivoluzione liberatrice, per
successive rivolte di popolo, delle quali egli descrisse una, così
sanguinaria e feroce, che fu accusato, nel 1907, di essere «un
terribile pessimista». In realtà il London anticipò con l’immaginazione
ciò che accadde negli Stati Uniti ed altrove tra gli anni 1912 e 1918;
così che oggi, nel 1925, noi possiamo giudicarlo profeta di sciagure,
se si vuole, ma profeta.
Infatti, nell’autunno del 1907, mentre il mondo s’adagiava nelle più
rosee e svariate ideologie umanitarie, Jack London, osservatore
acuto e chiaroveggente, anticipando e descrivendo gli avvenimenti
che sarebbero accaduti nel 1913, scriveva: «L’oligarchia voleva la
guerra con la Germania, e la voleva per molte ragioni. Nello
scompiglio che tale guerra avrebbe causato, nel rimescolìo delle
carte internazionali e nella conclusione di nuovi trattati e di nuove
alleanze, l’oligarchia aveva molto da guadagnare. Inoltre, la guerra
avrebbe esaurito gran parte dell’eccesso dì produzione nazionale,
ridotto gli eserciti di disoccupati che minacciavano tutti i paesi, e
concesso all’oligarchia spazio e tempo per perfezionare i suoi piani
di lotta sociale.
«Tale guerra avrebbe dato all’Oligarchia (si parla di quella degli Stati
Uniti) il possesso del mercato mondiale. Inoltre, avrebbe creato un
esercito permanente in continua efficienza, e nello stesso tempo
avrebbe sostituito nella mente del popolo l’idea di «America contro
Germania» a quella di «Socialismo contro Oligarchia». In realtà, la
guerra avrebbe fatto tutto questo se non ci fossero stati socialisti.
Un’adunanza segreta dei capi dell’Ovest fu convocata nelle nostre
quattro camerette di Pell Street. In essa fu esaminato prima
l’atteggiamento che il partito doveva assumere. Non era la prima
volta che veniva discussa la possibilità d’un conflitto armato; ma era
la prima volta che ciò si faceva negli Stati Uniti. Dopo la nostra
riunione segreta, ci ponemmo in contatto con l’organizzazione
nazionale, e ben presto furono scambiati marconigrammi attraverso
l’Atlantico, fra noi e l’Ufficio Internazionale del Lavoro. I socialisti
tedeschi erano disposti ad agire con noi... Il 4 dicembre (1913),
l’Ambasciatore americano fu richiamato dalla capitale tedesca. La
stessa notte una flotta da guerra tedesca si lanciava su Honolulu
affondando tre incrociatori e una torpediniera doganale e
bombardando la città. Il giorno dopo, sia la Germania che gli Stati
Uniti dichiararono la guerra, e in un’ora i socialisti dichiararono lo
sciopero generale nei due paesi. Per la prima volta il Dio della
Guerra tedesco si trovò di fronte gli uomini del suo impero, gli uomini
che facevano funzionare il suo impero. La novità della situazione
stava nel fatto che la rivolta era passiva: il popolo non lottava. Il
popolo rimaneva inerte; e rimanendo inerte legava le mani al Dio
della Guerra... Neppure una ruota si muoveva nel suo impero,
nessun treno procedeva, nessun telegramma percorreva i fili, perchè
ferrovieri e telegrafisti avevano cessato di lavorare, come il resto
della popolazione».
La guerra mondiale preconizzata da Jack London pel dicembre del
1913 ebbe inizio, invece, otto mesi dopo, nell’agosto del 1914, ma
l’azione delle organizzazioni operaie per impedire il conflitto, benchè
tentata, non ebbe buon successo per colpa del proletariato
tedesco [2].
Se Jack London avesse potuto prevedere la sconfitta del socialismo
nella guerra, avrebbe certamente mutato corso allo svolgimento del
suo racconto, pur lasciandone immutata la sostanza, ma non è da
pensare — dato il carattere sociale e ideale di tutta la sua opera —
che egli potesse seguire l’illusione di quelli che accettarono la guerra
come una soluzione tragica, ma definitiva della crisi mondiale, o dei
sognatori wilsoniani che credettero di aver combattuto e vinto la
guerra contro la guerra, e di poter ottenere il disarmo mediante la
Società delle Nazioni, o di coloro che vanno ripetendo che la guerra
ha trasformato la società e iniziato un’êra nuova.
Non c’è menzogna maggiore e peggiore di questa, e, a volerle
credere, più fatale ai destini umani.
La guerra non fu la soluzione di una crisi, ma tragico inevitabile
risultato delle condizioni della Società di prima della guerra, per
amoralità, immoralità, egoismo, ignoranza, avidità di ricchezza e di
piacere, squilibrio economico, ingiustizia sociale, e un’infinità di altri
mali nascosti dall’ipocrisia, svalutati dall’ottimismo, giustificati con
sofismi. La crisi perdura tuttora, perchè gli uomini, anzichè
ravvedersi degli errori passati che causarono la guerra, sembrano
quasi compiacersene e gloriarsene, giudicando la grande strage
come un fenomeno meraviglioso, e vanto non vergogna
dell’Umanità.
La spaventosa esperienza collettiva, che dovrebbe essere
considerata come un’esperienza di colpe comuni o, almeno, come
una dura e crudele necessità imposta da colpe altrui, e tale da far
ravvedere e rendere, comunque, pensosi delle cause che recarono
tanti lutti e tante rovine, pare, infatti, che faccia perdere ai più
coscienza del bene e del male, e li imbaldanzisca come se fossero
tutti trionfatori e salvatori della Patria e dell’Umanità. Ed è di oggi il
triste spettacolo dei pusillanimi, degli imboscati e intriganti di ieri,
che, sorretti dagli arricchiti di guerra, dòminano la piazza e tentano di
usurpare la gloria dei pochi veri benemeriti della Nazione, per
creare, a proprio e totale beneficio, l’ingiusto privilegio del governo
del proprio paese e dell’amministrazione della cosa pubblica.
Ma ritorniamo a Jack London, a proposito del quale questa
digressione non può considerarsi oziosa. Vien fatto di pensare,
infatti, che se le condizioni della Società prima del 1914 crearono la
Grande Guerra, il perdurare e l’aggravarsi delle stesse condizioni
non possa che preparare quella catastrofe anche maggiore, a breve
scadenza, e cioè quella Grande Distruzione prevista e
magistralmente descritta dal London. La Grande Distruzione sarà
inevitabile e vicina se gli uomini di buona volontà non agiranno
prontamente, con coraggio, e perseveranza.
Ma come agire, come evitare la nuova sventura?
***
Anatole France scrisse che è necessario che coloro che hanno il

dono prezioso e raro di prevedere, manifestino i pericoli che
presentono. Anche Jack London «aveva il genio che vede quello che
è nascosto alla folla degli uomini, e possedeva una scienza che gli
permetteva d’anticipare i tempi. Egli previde l’assieme degli
avvenimenti che si sono svolti nella nostra epoca». Ma, ahimè! chi
gli diede ascolto? Le sue previsioni furono lette prima della guerra da
centinaia di migliaia di uomini sparsi in tutto il mondo. Forse qualche
pensatore solitario gli credette, ma i più lo considerarono pazzo o
visionario, molti lo chiamarono pessimista, e i suoi compagni di fede
l’accusarono di seminare lo spavento nelle file del proletariato.
Pertanto, l’ottimismo di prima della guerra non dovrebbe essere più
possibile.
Chi non vede che la guerra ha reso più selvaggio l’urto degli
interessi, accresciuto smisuratamente l’avidità del potere, della
ricchezza e del piacere, fra contese sociali e politiche esasperate e il
terrore delle continue minacce fra nazioni, e classi, segni tutti del
rapido processo di decomposizione della società contemporanea?
Mai nella storia dell’Umanità fu vista una maggiore miseria spirituale
e morale, mai l’anima umana fu così offesa e degradata da tanti
delitti!
Perciò il Tallone di ferro riappare oggi, dopo quasi vent’anni dacchè
fu scritto, come specchio di dolorosa attualità, riflette fedelmente i
mali che travagliano la vita e la coscienza degli individui e delle
nazioni, mostra i pericoli del nostro disordine sociale. Però, mentre
vediamo quello che in realtà fu ed è il tallone di ferro della
plutocrazia, non possiamo non meditare sulle deformazioni del
movimento operaio che, incapace, ieri, per insufficiente preparazione
morale e spirituale, d’impedire la guerra, minaccia oggi la società col
terribile tallone di ferro della demagogia e dell’ignoranza. Se
volessimo generalizzare, dovremmo ricordare un infinito numero di
talloni di ferro! Ma già il quadro è troppo fosco e pauroso nel suo
assieme per attardarci nei particolari. Lasciamo anzi che la speranza
rientri nei cuori, sia pure per un istante, con le immagini delle
creature che raddolciscono e rendono caro questo libro di orrori: con
l’immagine di Ernesto Everhard, il rivoluzionario «pieno di coraggio e
di saggezza, pieno di forza e di dolcezza», che tanto somiglia allo
scrittore che l’ha creato: con quella della moglie di Everhard,
dall’anima grande e innamorata e dallo spirito forte; con quelle del
vescovo Morehouse e del padre di Avis, indimenticabili, l’uno per
l’ingenua anima evangelica, l’altro per l’amore della scienza, che lo
rende immune dalle cattiverie degli uomini e superiore alle traversie
della vita. Creature buone e sublimi come queste creature del
London esistono pure nella vita reale e mantengono accesa, anche
nelle epoche più buie, con la fiamma dell’amore, la lampada della
civiltà.
È da sperare comunque che se la società contemporanea dovrà
precipitare, con tutte le passate ideologie e gli antichi ordinamenti,
nell’abisso approfondito dalla guerra, sia almeno rapida la rovina per
una più rapida rinascita, e che non occorreranno i tre secoli di tallone
di ferro preconizzati dal London perchè l’umanità rinnovata riprenda
il cammino verso altitudini mai toccate. È certo intanto che il
problema, da economico e politico qual era nel secolo scorso, è
divenuto oggi essenzialmente morale; e sarà domani semplicemente
religioso. Ormai sappiamo che non trionferanno nè le idee di Carlo
Marx, nè quelle di Guglielmo James, nè del Sorel, nè del Bergson. Vi
sarà probabilmente un ritorno alla morale cristiana, e si considererà
nuovamente la vita come una prova di rinuncia e di dolore; ma
dovranno alla fine cadere le barriere tra classe e classe, tra nazione
e nazione, scomparire le diversità di lingua e di religione, perchè gli
uomini possano riconoscersi membri di un’unica famiglia umana.
Abbandonate le discordie, i vivi ascolteranno la voce dei morti, si
caricheranno con lietezza la loro parte di lavoro per il progresso
umano, e comprendendosi ed amandosi, prepareranno un mondo
migliore per le future generazioni. Allora le antiche verità degli
Evangeli avranno una nuova interpretazione e, soprattutto, una
nuova pratica; sarà, in altre parole, il trionfo dell’amore, della
Religione, dell’Umanità secondo una nuova disciplina morale,
coscientemente accettata in regime di libertà Universale; e la
devozione del forte per il debole, la venerazione del debole per il
forte diventeranno norma di vita veramente civile. Jack London ha
previsto e auspicato tutto ciò, con grandezza di cuore.
La certezza di una Umanità riconciliata, unita, concorde, solidale
davanti al dolore ed al mistero illumina, appunto, e riscalda come un
chiarore di sole, tutte le opere di Jack London; il quale ci appare
come un Cavaliere della Verità, e poeta e profeta dell’amore
universale.
Rapallo, gennaio del 1925.
GIAN DÀULI.
Questa traduzione è
dedicata allo spirito
formidabile di GIOVANNI
ANSALDO.
G. D.
IL TALLONE DI FERRO
(THE IRON HEEL)
CAPITOLO I.
LA MIA AQUILA.
La brezza d’estate agita i pini giganteschi, e le onde della Wild Water

rumoreggiano ritmicamente sulle pietre muscose. Numerose farfalle
danzano al sole e da ogni parte freme ed ondeggia il ronzio delle
api. In mezzo ad una quiete così profonda, io me ne sto sola,
pensierosa ed agitata.
È tale e tanta la mia serenità, che mi turba, e mi sembra irreale.
Tutto è tranquillo intorno, ma è come la calma che precede la
tempesta. Tendo l’orecchio e spio, con tutti i sensi, il minimo indizio
del cataclisma imminente. Purchè non sia prematuro, o purchè non
scoppi troppo presto [3].
La mia inquietudine è giustificata. Penso, penso continuamente, e
non posso fare a meno di pensare. Ho vissuto così a lungo nella
mischia, che la calma mi opprime, e la mia immaginazione prevede,
istintivamente, quel turbine di rovina e di morte che si scatenerà
ancora, fra poco. Mi pare di sentire le grida delle vittime, mi pare di
vedere, come pel passato, tanta tenera e preziosa carne contusa e
mutilata, tante anime strappate violentemente dai loro nobili corpi e
lanciate verso Dio [4]. Poveri esseri noi siamo: costretti alla
carneficina e alla distruzione per ottenere il nostro intento, per far
regnare sulla terra una pace e una felicità durature!
E poi sono proprio sola! Quando non penso a ciò che deve essere,
penso a ciò che è stato, a ciò che non è più. Penso alla mia aquila
che batteva l’aria colle sue instancabili ali, e prese il volo verso il suo
sole, verso l’ideale radioso della libertà umana.
Non potrei starmene inerte ad aspettare il grande avvenimento, che
è opera sua, un’opera della quale egli non può più vedere il
compimento. È lavoro delle sue mani, creazione della sua mente.
Egli le ha dedicato gli anni migliori, l’ha nutrita della sua vita [5].
Perciò voglio consacrare questo periodo di attesa e di ansia al
ricordo di mio marito. Io sola, al mondo, potrò far luce su quella
personalità così nobile, che non sarà mai abbastanza nota.
Era un’anima immensa! Quando il mio amore si purifica di ogni
egoismo, rimpiango sopratutto che egli sia scomparso e che non
veda l’aurora vicina. Non possiamo fallire! Egli ha costruito troppo
solidamente e con troppa sicurezza. Dal petto dell’umanità atterrata,
strapperemo il maledetto Tallone di Ferro! Al segnale della riscossa
insorgeranno, ovunque, le legioni dei lavoratori, così che mai, nella
storia, si sarà veduto alcunchè di simile. La solidarietà delle masse
lavoratrici è assicurata; per la prima volta scoppierà una rivoluzione
internazionale, in tutto il mondo [6].
Vedete bene, sono così assillata da questo pensiero, che da lungo
tempo vivo, giorno e notte, persino i particolari del grande
avvenimento. E non posso disgiungerli dal ricordo di colui che ne era
l’anima.
Tutti sanno che ha lavorato molto e sofferto crudelmente per la
libertà; ma nessuno sa meglio di me che, durante i venti anni di
tumulto nei quali ho condiviso la sua vita, ho potuto apprezzare la
sua pazienza, il suo sforzo incessante, la sua totale dedizione alla
causa per la quale è morto, or sono appena due mesi.
Cercherò di raccontare semplicemente come mai Ernesto Everhard
sia entrato a far parte della mia vita, come il suo influsso su me sia
cresciuto al punto di farmi diventare parte di lui stesso, e quali
mutamenti meravigliosi abbia operato sul mio destino; così, potrete
vederlo con i miei occhi e conoscerlo come l’ho conosciuto io, a
parte certi segreti troppo intimi e dolci per essere rivelati.
Lo vidi la prima volta nel febbraio del 1912, quando, invitato a pranzo
da mio padre, [7] entrò in casa nostra a Berkeley; e non posso dire
che ne ricevessi una buona impressione. C’era molta gente in casa;
e nella sala dove aspettavamo l’arrivo degli ospiti, egli fece
un’entrata molto meschina. Era la sera dei «predicatori», come mio
padre ci diceva confidenzialmente, e certo Ernesto non era a suo
agio fra quella gente di chiesa.
Prima di tutto, era mal vestito. Portava un abito di panno oscuro,
acquistato già fatto, che gli stava male. Veramente, anche in seguito,
non riuscì mai a trovare un vestito che gli stesse bene addosso.
Quella sera, come sempre, quando si moveva, i suoi muscoli gli
sollevavano la stoffa, e, a causa dell’ampio petto, la giacca gli si
aggrinziva in una quantità di pieghe fra le spalle. Aveva il collo d’un
campione di boxe [8], grosso e robusto. Ecco dunque, dicevo fra me,
quel filosofo sociale, ex maniscalco, che papà ha scoperto. Infatti,
con quei bicipiti e quel collo, ne aveva l’aspetto. Lo definii
immediatamente come una specie di prodigio, un Blind Tom [9] della
classe operaia.
E quando, poi, mi strinse la mano; era la sua, una stretta di mano
sicura e forte, ma mi guardò arditamente con i suoi occhi neri...
troppo arditamente, anzi, secondo me. Capirete, ero una creatura
nata e vissuta in quell’ambiente, ed avevo, a quel tempo, istinti di
classe molto forti.
Quell’ardire mi sarebbe sembrato imperdonabile in un uomo della
mia stessa classe. So che dovetti abbassare gli occhi, e che quando
me ne liberai, presentandolo ad altri, provai un vero sollievo nel
voltarmi per salutare il Vescovo Morehouse, uno dei miei prediletti,
uomo di mezza età, dolce e serio, dall’aspetto buono di un Cristo, e
di un sapiente.
Ma quell’ardire, che io attribuii a presunzione, fu, in realtà, il filo
conduttore per mezzo del quale mi fu possibile conoscere il carattere
di Ernesto Everhard, ch’era semplice e retto, non aveva paura di
nulla, e non voleva perdere il tempo in forme convenzionali. «Mi
siete subito piaciuta», mi disse molto tempo dopo. «Perchè, dunque,
non avrei dovuto riempire i miei occhi di ciò che mi piaceva?». Ho
detto che nulla lo intimoriva. Era un aristocratico per natura, sebbene
combattesse l’aristocrazia; un superuomo, la bestia bionda descritta
da Nietzsche [10], e, nonostante ciò, un democratico appassionato.
Occupata com’ero ad accogliere gli altri invitati, e forse anche per la
cattiva impressione avuta, dimenticai quasi del tutto il filosofo
operaio. Attirò la mia attenzione una o due volte, durante il pranzo,
mentre ascoltava la conversazione di alcuni pastori. Gli vidi brillare
negli occhi una luce strana, come se egli si divertisse; e conclusi che
doveva essere pieno di umorismo, e gli perdonai quasi il modo
ridicolo di vestire.
Ma il tempo passava: il pranzo era inoltrato, ed egli non aveva
aperto bocca una volta sola mentre i pastori discorrevano
animatamente della classe operaia, e dei suoi rapporti col clero, e di
tutto ciò che la chiesa aveva fatto e faceva per essa. Osservai che
mio padre era seccato di quel mutismo, e approfittò di un momento
di calma per chiedergli quale fosse il suo parere. Ernesto si limitò ad
alzare le spalle, e dopo un secco: «non ho niente da dire», riprese a
mangiare delle mandorle salate.
Ma mio padre non si dava tanto facilmente per vinto, e dopo pochi
secondi, disse: «Abbiamo in mezzo a noi un membro della classe
operaia. Sono certo che egli potrebbe presentarci le cose da un
punto di vista nuovo e interessante. Alludo al signor Ernesto
Everhard».
Tutti manifestarono il loro interesse, e sollecitarono Ernesto ad
esporre le sue idee, con un atteggiamento così largo, tollerante,
benevolo, che pareva condiscendenza. E vidi che anche Ernesto
osservò questo con una specie di allegria, perchè girò lentamente gli
occhi intorno, lungo la tavola, e io scorsi in quegli occhi uno
scintillare di malizia.
— Non sono tagliato per le cortesi discussioni ecclesiastiche, —
cominciò modestamente: poi esitò.
Si udirono delle voci di incoraggiamento:
— Avanti, avanti!
E il Dottor Hammerfield aggiunse:
— Non temiamo la verità da chiunque sia detta, purchè in buona
fede.
— Voi separate dunque la sincerità dalla verità? — chiese vivamente
Ernesto, ridendo.
Il Dottor Hammerfield rimase un momento perplesso e finì col
balbettare:
— Il migliore fra noi può sbagliare, giovanotto, il migliore.
Un mutamento improvviso apparve in Ernesto. In un attimo, sembrò
un altro uomo.
— Ebbene, allora lasciatemi cominciare col dirvi che vi sbagliate
tutti. Voi non sapete niente, meno che niente della classe operaia. La
vostra sociologia è errata e priva di valore come il vostro modo di
ragionare.
Più che le parole, mi colpì il tono con cui le diceva, e fui scossa alla
prima parola. Era uno squillo di tromba che mi fece vibrare tutta. E
tutti ne furono scossi, svegliati dalla solita monotonia e dal solito
intorpidimento.
— Che c’è dunque di così terribilmente falso e privo di valore nel
nostro modo di ragionare, giovanotto? — chiese il Dottor
Hammerfield, con voce che rivelava dispetto.
— Voi siete dei metafisici, potete provare ogni cosa con la
metafisica, e naturalmente qualunque altro metafisico può provare,
con sua soddisfazione, che avete torto. Siete degli anarchici nel
campo del pensiero. E avete la passione delle costruzioni cosmiche.
Ognuno di voi vive una concezione personale, creata dalla sua
fantasia, e secondo i suoi desiderii. Ma non conoscete nulla del vero
mondo nel quale vivete, e il vostro pensiero non ha posto nella
realtà, se non come fenomeno di squilibrio mentale.
«Sapete che cosa pensavo sentendovi parlare a vanvera?
Ricordavo quegli scolastici del Medio Evo che discutevano

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Test Bank for Palmer, A History of

Europe in the Modern World, 11th

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Management Leading and Collaborating in a Competitive

Test Bank for Voyages in World History, Volume I,

A. a massive peasant insurrection.

B. a rise in wages for the survivors.

C. the development of the model for modern hospitals.

A. the Parliament widened its powers in England.

B. England and France entered an extended period of peace and solidarity.

C. both England and France began to tax the clergy.

D. French armies ravaged England.

D. the Protestant Reformation.

A. tried to reunite the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches.

B. unsuccessfully attempted to conciliate the protestants of Germany and Bohemia.

monarch and ended the practices of simony and nepotism.

B. the Renaissance witnessed the birth of the modern natural sciences.

C. an almost purely secular attitude first appeared in Italy.

as distinct from the Middle Ages.

in the Middle Ages.

B. The Black Death was less severe in Italy than elsewhere.

A. it was a moderately large Italian city-state.

C. it produced an amazing number of the leading figures of the Italian Renaissance.

A. a sense of the vast range of human powers.

B. an appreciation for civic consciousness and individualism.

C. the enjoyment of wealth.

D. admiration for the life of contemplation and meditation.

A. The space in Renaissance art tended to be indeterminate.

niches and portals of the great cathedrals with statues.

C. Renaissance art demonstrated a greater appreciation for concrete realities.

A. the beginning of literature in its modern sense.

C. an interest in political and civic questions.

D. an interest in learning Arabic.

A. he raised considerations of moral philosophy in his writings without subordinating them to

C. he was the first to write in Italian rather than Latin.

D. he championed law and the legal profession.

A. because of a papal bull.

Comedy. C. as humanists rejected the learning of ancient Greece and Rome.

D. because Cicero advocated its use.

15. Medieval schooling during the Renaissance:

A. encouraged women to study in universities.

B. grouped students by social ranking rather than age or level of achievement.

C. grouped students by age and level of achievement.

D. discouraged the study of languages.

Greek and Latin.

C. should be extremely well-educated in order to win arguments through displays of learning.

D. encouraged greater gender equality.

18. Niccolò Machiavelli's writings on politics were significant because:

A. he "emancipated" politics from theology and moral philosophy.

C. he discouraged the secularization of politics.

D. he discouraged political rulers from acting in their own interests.

B. In the northern Renaissance, the religious element was much stronger.

C. In the northern Renaissance, painting techniques were less innovative.

D. All of the above.

B. the Turks invaded Italy, sacking Rome in 1527.

northern countries access to the Mediterranean.

fourteenth and fifteenth centuries except:

A. mystics found no need to join other people in open worship.

B. mystics did not want sacraments to be administered by priests.