MyHumanitiesStudio Exercises


1			The Arts of Native North America (pp. 248-251) Literature > Poetry > Rhythm http://www.mhhe.com/HumanitiesStudio/5/7/5.html Rhythm is an integral part of poetry; it is one of the features that distinguishes poetry from prose. How is rhythm used in the Navajo Night Chant (p. 250)? How does the experience of reading this poem aloud differ from reading it silently? Compare the rhythm of the poem to the literal meanings of its lines: Which seems to be more important in this piece, sound or sense? How does the rhythm of the chant compare to that in Tennyson's "Ulysses"?




2			African Sculpture (pp. 346-347) Art > Texture > Actual Texture > Physical http://www.mhhe.com/HumanitiesStudio/1/1/3/1/3.html Texture is an important element of art. What texture does the Songe mask from Zaire (Fig. 9.9) appear to have? What does the texture of the piece add to its impact? Why might the artist that made it have chosen such a texture? Compare this piece to the cast bronze head of the Benin oba (Fig. 9.4), The Thunderbird House Post (Fig. 9.11), and the Aztec Coatlique, Mother of the Gods (Fig. 9.18). How do the textures (and other features) of African facial sculptures differ from American ones? What might be the significance of these differences (or of any similarities)?