Western Legal Tradition
Study Questions for Midterm Exam
Spring 1996
Part I: Identification
You will be asked to identify 10 items (5-10 word answer). Identification items will be selected from the following list:
- Ma'at
- Pharaoh
- Re
- Osiris
- The Two Lands
- cuneiform
- Mesopotamia
- Hammurabi
- Marduk
- Shamash
- Moses
- plebeians
- Roman Republic
- Roman Empire
- Carthage
- Constantine
- Justinian
- lex regia
- Gregory the Great
- Leo the Great
- Danegeld
- Vassal
- Fortunius
- Constitutions of Clarendon
- Crusades
- Act of Supremacy
Part II: Essay questions
Essay questions will be chosen from among the following questions. There will be two essay questions on the test. You should plan to write a 20-minute essay on each question. The most effective way to study is to write out a full answer to each question, then discuss your answers with a group of other students in the class. Your answers should reflect your knowledge of the course materials (both reading and lectures).
- Discuss the similarities and differences between Egyptian and Mespotamian thinking in the areas of law and religion.
- In what ways was the God of the Hebrews different from those of the Egyptians and Mesopotamians? What was the significance of these differences for church-state relations?
- Trace the development of a distinction between church and state from ancient times to the Norman Conquest (1066).
- Compare Cicero's theory of natural law with that of Aquinas.
- Would you favor a Supreme Court nominee who adopted the natural law position? Why or why not? Defend your answer. (Be sure to present both sides of the argument.)
- Under what circumstances did Augustine (in his later view) think that the use of coercion was justified? Why did he think that it was good to coerce heretics? Evaluate his arguments.
- What difficulties in church-state relations developed in the feudal period? What aspects of the feudal system, and of church practice, fostered these problems?
- Describe the balance of power between church and state in the time of Henry II. Why, in your opinion, did Henry and Becket fail to resolve their disagreements? Argue for your position.
- What factors have historically operated to constrain the exercise of power by rulers? Support your answer with examples.
- Becket and More were both men of the church who came into conflict with their kings. Compare the two conflicts, noting points of similarity and difference.