AP Notes, Outlines, Study Guides, Vocabulary, Practice Exams and more!

AP Literature Cultural Literacy- LIt. Philosophy, Religion Flashcards

Terms : Hide Images
6976582627Plato's AcademySchool of philosophy created by Plato in Athens.0
6976585768AeneidVirgil's Latin epic story of the Trojan Aeneas and his pre-founding of Rome.1
6976589031AeschylusGreek poet and founder of tragedy. The "Oresteia."2
6976592036Aesop's FablesGreeks stories told with animals and teaching moral lessons.3
6976594330AgnosticismDenial of knowledge of the existence of a God.4
6976595435AllahIslamic name for God. Arabic.5
6976598458AnimismBelief that natural objects possess a spirit.6
6976601329AnthropomorphismGiving human characteristics to objects, animals, plants, nature, or God.7
6976603487St. Aquinas13th Cent. priest. Reconciled Aristotle with Christianity.8
6976604845AristophanesGreek comic poet. The "Clouds" and "Lysistrata."9
6976606787BeatriceWoman loved by Dante. Guides his through Paradise. Subject of his sonnets. Represents object of courtly love.10
6976609943CalvinFrench protestant 16th Cent. God's grace and predestination.11
6976614042CandideSatire by Voltaire. "All is for the best in this best of all possible worlds."12
6976618665CiceroAncient Roman statesman. Rhetoric13
6976620096Clockwork UniverseImage of universe as God's clock, set into motion and determining laws of physics. Newton and heliocentric universe.14
6976622715Cogito, ergo sumLatin. I think; therefore I am. Descartes15
6976625927Confucius.His ethics influences Chinese value on learning and family.16
6976627604CopernicusModeled Ptolemaic (solar system) Universe. Founded modern astronomy.17
6976630708DanteItalian 13th Cent. Divine Comedy epic journey through hell, purgatory and heaven.18
6976633284DeismGod created and remains apart from universe using natural law. Rejects supernatural. Stresses ethical conduct. Many founder of US claimed to be deists.19
6976636220Don JuanLegendary Spanish lover. Referred to by Mozart and Byron.20
6976638751Don QuixoteCervantes. Reads too much Romance and believes he is a knight. Too idealistic?21
6976640727DostoevskyRussian 19th Cent. "Crime and Punishment" and "The Brothers Karamazov."22
6976642240DualismSystem explaining in terms of 2 opposing principles. Mind/matter Light/ Dark Good/Evil23
6976647423Epicureanismphilosophy founded on finding pleasure in life. Higher intellectual/ spiritual pleasure.24
6976650286Ethical relativismThe belief that ethical standards are subject to local interpretation and application. Prevailing view of person or culture.25
6982305836ExistentialismFear or dread coming from knowing that we are entirely free and therefore responsible for what we become vs. living in roles.26
6982307837FatalismEvents come from an impersonal fate and cannot be changed. (Determinism)27
6982309637FaustLegendary alchemist who sold his soul to get youth, knowledge and power. Goethe and Marlowe28
6982312077Free WillAbility to choose, think and act voluntarily. Author or your own actions vs. fate.29
6982315402Good FridayHoly Friday. Crucifixion prior to Easter Sunday.30
6982318273GraceFavor, love, and protection of God. Leads to salvation.31
6982322801HedonismDevotion to sensual pleasures. Vs. Epicureanism32
6982324105HeresyBelief considered unacceptable religiously. Heretics.33
6982324682HerodotusGreek Father of History. Persian wars.34
6982334152HumanistFocus on human possibilities. Less focus on God and afterlife.35
6982344649Immaculate ConceptionCatholic doctrine the Mary, Mother of Jesus, was free from original sin.36
6982347606InfernoHell in Dante's Divine Comedy. Describes various punishments.37
6982352033IslamFounded by Mohammed. Worship of one God of Jews and Christians. "Submission to the will of God."38
6982354701JihadHoly War ordained by God. A contoversial term in Islam that literally means "striving in the way of Allah"39
7162155633KafkaThe Metamophosis. Known for bizarre and frustrating stories. Man wakes up as a fly.40
7162158848Kant18th Cent. German philosopher. The "Critiques." We cannot know a thing in itself as it is- but only as our mind constitutes it. Must believe in God, Free Will.41
7162168202King James Bible1611. English Protestant best-known version. Commissioned by King James I.42
7162173710KoranHoly book of Islam The holy text used by Islam containing the exact word of God as revealed to Muhammad. Also Qu'ran43
7162176477KosherFollowing special dietary laws taken from Hebrew scripture.44
7162178774Liberal ArtsTo cultivate general intellect.The subjects and skills necessary for a free person to take part in public life trivium: rhetoric, grammar, logic, quadrivium: arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, music45
7162182000LockeNatural Rights: life, liberty, property believed that governments were in place to safeguard the natural rights of people Tabula Rasa. Leviathan46
7162184288Lucifera proud, rebellious archangel, identified with Satan, who fell from heaven. Milton's anti-hero. Greek "Bringer of Light."47
7162186923Martin Luther16th Cent. German. Founded Protestantism. Posted the 95 Theses on Church door at Wittenberg. Opposed sell of indulgences and transubstantiation.48
7162192389Lysistrataby Aristophanes; women go on sex strike until the Peloponnesian war is over. 411 BC49
7162198800MachiavelliWrote "The Prince" wrote a guide for rulers on how to gain and keep power. The ends justify the means50
7164606466MarxismEconomic determinism. Capitalists vs. workers would lead to revolt and production would be commonly owned. Communism.51
7164612403Meccathe holiest city of Islam; Muhammad's birthplace and home of the Kaaba. A black sacred stone.52
7164630449MephistophelesDevil who tempts Faust into selling his soul. Goethe and Christopher Marlowe wrote about him. So did Sting.53
7164638155MetamophosesRoman source for much of our classical mythology. The banished poet Ovid wrote it.54
7164696202MohammedArab founder of Islam. Chief prophet of God. Dictated the Koran.55
7164699197MoliereSatirical French writer of Tartuffe and the Misanthrope.56
7164701855Mortal SinVenial Sin in catholic theology, a more serious sin that results in spiritual death. Willful murder is one.57
7164710036Music of the SpheresCreated by harmonious of movement of stars and planets within celestial spheres. Ptolemaic Universe.58
7164714692NietzcheOpposed to Christianity. "God is Dead." Concept of the "Superman" influenced the Nazi's.59
7164717177NihilismHuman life is meaningless. All religions, codes, and systems are empty and false. Nihil=nothing60
7164721350Noble SavageUncivilized person but more worthy than some civilized. Tonto? Often Romanticized.61
7164724943NirvanaBuddhist highest state of consciousness. Free from attachments and desires.62
7164728289OckhamPhilosopher in 14th Cent. "Entities are not to be multiplied beyond necessity." The simplest solution is usually right. Helio-centric universe.63
7164760458PantheismGod or a group of gods, = the natural world. Nature worship. Pan was a roman satyr god who lived in the forest. Panic.64
7164765920PenanceActs done to make up for sin.65
7164768005Philosopher-KingPlato's ideal ruler from his work "The Republic". Wise and virtuous.66
7164769211Perfectability of ManDoctrine that people are capable of achieving perfection on earth by natural means without the grace of God.67
7164777600Philosopher's StoneUsed in "alchemy" to turn metals into gold. Harry Potter!68
7164782713PlatonismWords and numbers exist independently of the things they are called.69
7164784542PolytheismBelief in multiple gods. Ex. Ancient Greeks.70
7164786309PragmatismTruth of a statement is measured by its practical consequences. John Dewey.71
7164787985PredestinationJohn Calvin. All events have been willed by God. Calvinist belief that God long ago determined who would gain salvation72
7164794311Providencethe protective care of God or of nature as a spiritual power. Divine. Declaration of Independence.73
7164799489PurgatoryPlace for dead souls to be purified of sin before they can enter heaven. Hamlet's dad hangs here.74
7164803024RelativismDoctrine that nothing is universally true but valid depending on the circumstances.75
7164806314RomanticismNineteenth-century artistic movement that appealed to emotion rather than reason. Imagination, freedom.76
7164810831Marquis de Sade18th cent. French author notorious for works of sexual perversity and sadism. Pleasure from pain.77
7164814365SapphoAncient Greek poet known for her love lyrics.78
7164816111Schismpermanent division in a church. Eastern and Western Catholicism.79
7164819971SecularNot concerned with religious matters. Opposite of sacred. Not anti-religious. State vs. Church.80
7164824512Seven Deadly SinsMiddle Age sins that lead to damnation. Pride, greed, lust, anger, gluttony, envy, and sloth.81
7164829928SophistsGreek teachers more interested in winning the argument than truth.82
7164834183StoicismRoman stoics believed that people strictly restrain emotion to achieve wisdom. Spock and Brutus.83
7164887774Tabula RasaBlank Slate. Calvin believed children were born this way.84
7164893367Totemanimal or plant whose spirit guided them. Represented for a person, family or group.85
7164897929TransubstantiationThe changing of bread and wine of the Eucharist into the body and blood of Christ. Major dispute between protestants and Catholics.86
7164901760TroubadoursWandering minstrels who popularized the vernacular in lyric poetry. Medieval internet. Taught chivalry and love.87
7164904459UtilitarianismOption That Results in the Greates Good for the Greatest # of People. John Stuart Mill.88
7164907304VirgilAuthor of Aeneid. Roman poet of founding of Rome through travels of Aeneas. Trojan. Led Dante through Inferno.89
7164910616VishnuPreserver deity of Hinduism. Appeared as Krishna and the Buddha.90
7164913600Yin and YangPowers that govern the natural rhythms of life and must be balanced in Chinese theory. Tao. Yin=passive, negative. Yang=active, positive.91
7164916854ZenFrom Buddhism. Enlightenment thru meditation. Release from self.92
7164922730Zeitgeistthe mood or spirit of the times. Roaring Twenties.93
7164927692BeowulfA hero who fights Grendel, Grendel's Mother and a fire breathing dragon; protagonist94
7164928443Bard of AvonShakespeare's nickname because he was born in Stratford-Upon-the-Avon River95
7164928987Big BrotherRuler or government that invades privacy of citizens fro "security." George Orwell's 198496
7164930965Brave New WorldAldous Huxley. Government control by pleasure principle. Keep masses distracted, ignorant and pleasured. Soma. From Shakespeare's "Tempest."97
7164935314Byronic HeroLord Byron. Melancholy and rebellious young man. Usually destroyed. Byron, James Dean, Kurt Cobain. Romanticized.98
7164938483Catch-22Joseph Heller. WWII Post-modern. Absurd arrangement that puts one in a double bind. Soldier could be mentally "unfit", and released if insane, but if sane enough to detest the horrors of war, he could not.99

Need Help?

We hope your visit has been a productive one. If you're having any problems, or would like to give some feedback, we'd love to hear from you.

For general help, questions, and suggestions, try our dedicated support forums.

If you need to contact the Course-Notes.Org web experience team, please use our contact form.

Need Notes?

While we strive to provide the most comprehensive notes for as many high school textbooks as possible, there are certainly going to be some that we miss. Drop us a note and let us know which textbooks you need. Be sure to include which edition of the textbook you are using! If we see enough demand, we'll do whatever we can to get those notes up on the site for you!