All CLEP Humanities Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #1 : Analyzing The Content Of Medieval And Renaissance Poetry
The medieval work that followed its author's journey through Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven is __________.
Sir Gawayne and the Grene Knight
The Canterbury Tales
The Summa Theologiœ
Beowulf
The Divine Comedy
The Divine Comedy
The Divine Comedy tells the story of its author, Dante, traveling through the different realms of Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven, all to find what happened to his deceased lover, Beatrice. The work is divided into three separate sections between Inferno (Hell), Purgatorio (Purgatory), and Paradiso (Heaven). The whole work is an allegory for the soul's journey to God, as expressed in Medieval Catholic theology.
Example Question #2 : Analyzing The Content Of Medieval And Renaissance Poetry
Which of these figures was in limbo in Dante Alighieri's fourteenth century epic poem The Divine Comedy?
Beatrice
Emperor Frederick II, King of the Holy Roman Empire
Queen Dido of Carthage
Sultan Saladin of Egypt
Judas Iscariot
Sultan Saladin of Egypt
Sultan Saladin is the correct answer. He was placed in limbo because he was an honorable man, despite being a non-Christian. Sultan Saladin was a contemporary of Richard the Lionheart and conquered Jerusalem in the Second and Third Crusades. Others in limbo in The Divine Comedy include Julius Caesar, Hector, and Avicenna.