B.L.A.; occasionally A.L.B. Bachelor of Liberal Arts History and Social Sciences 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which document, signed in 1215, is considered a foundational text for limiting the power of the English monarchy and protecting individual rights?
- Magna Carta (Correct answer)
- Bill of Rights
- Habeas Corpus Act
- Petition of Right
Correct answer: Magna Carta
The Magna Carta, signed by King John in 1215, established that even the king was subject to the rule of law.
Question 2: The concept of 'manifest destiny' in 19th-century America primarily justified which of the following?
- Westward territorial expansion across North America (Correct answer)
- Abolition of slavery
- Women's suffrage movement
- Industrial labor reforms
Correct answer: Westward territorial expansion across North America
Manifest Destiny was the belief that American settlers were destined to expand across the entire North American continent.
Question 3: Which sociologist coined the term 'sociological imagination' to describe the ability to connect personal troubles to broader social issues?
- C. Wright Mills (Correct answer)
- Émile Durkheim
- Max Weber
- Talcott Parsons
Correct answer: C. Wright Mills
C. Wright Mills introduced 'the sociological imagination' in his 1959 book of the same name, emphasizing the link between biography and history.
Question 4: The Reconstruction Era in the United States (1865–1877) primarily aimed to address which post-Civil War challenge?
- Reintegrating Confederate states and defining rights of freed enslaved people (Correct answer)
- Industrializing the Southern economy
- Expanding westward settlement
- Reforming the federal banking system
Correct answer: Reintegrating Confederate states and defining rights of freed enslaved people
Reconstruction focused on readmitting Southern states to the Union and establishing legal protections for formerly enslaved African Americans.
Question 5: In anthropology, the term 'ethnocentrism' refers to which of the following?
- Judging other cultures by the standards of one's own culture (Correct answer)
- The study of ethnic minority communities
- Cultural exchange between different societies
- The preservation of indigenous traditions
Correct answer: Judging other cultures by the standards of one's own culture
Ethnocentrism is the tendency to view one's own culture as superior and to use it as a benchmark for evaluating others.
Question 6: Which theory in political science argues that states act primarily out of self-interest and the pursuit of power in an anarchic international system?
- Realism (Correct answer)
- Liberalism
- Constructivism
- Feminism
Correct answer: Realism
Realism holds that the international system is anarchic and that states prioritize national security and power above all else.
B.L.A.; occasionally A.L.B. Bachelor of Liberal Arts History and Social Sciences 1
Which document, signed in 1215, is considered a foundational text for limiting the power of the English monarchy and protecting individual rights?