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Test Your Cultural Literacy IQ: Updated & Revised
There are born geniuses. Then there are the rest of us -- and even the most-schooled among us may have gaps in our cultural literacy, our general knowledge of culture, history, and world events. Test Your Cultural Literacy I.Q. brings you up to speed with hundreds of entertaining questions in more than a dozen categories,
American & World History • Geography • Science • Art & Architecture • Music • Literature • Myth & Religion • Quotes • Current Events
Packed with multiple-choice questions (and their answers, of course), this stimulating volume can help you develop your own cultural literacy -- or challenge other trivia buffs in a fun and educational meeting of the minds!
Test Your Cultural Literacy I.Q.
American & World History • Geography • Science • Art & Architecture • Music • Literature • Myth & Religion • Quotes • Current Events
Packed with multiple-choice questions (and their answers, of course), this stimulating volume can help you develop your own cultural literacy -- or challenge other trivia buffs in a fun and educational meeting of the minds!
Test Your Cultural Literacy I.Q.
448 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published September 1, 1992
1 person is currently reading
73 people want to read
About the author
Diane Zahler
16 books242 followersI grew up reading children's books and never wanted to do anything but write them. I'm the author of nine middle grade novels, and my newest book is a historical novel called WILD BIRD. I live in the country with my husband and very enthusiastic dog Jinx. Visit my website at www.dianezahler.com.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
June 13, 2018
This is a review of three books associated with the concept of Cultural Literacy - a term introduced by E.D. Hirsch in the late 1980s with his book of the same name: Cultural Literacy (1987). (None of the three books reviewed here are Hirsch’s 1987 book.)
NOTE: There are parts of this review in my separate reviews for the other two of these three books. But they have nothing that this review doesn't have.
Cultural Literacy??
What does Hirsch mean by “cultural literacy”? Here’s an example that illustrates. Suppose you’re a younger person, or a person from a minority sub-culture (American Indian, inner city migrant, etc) or a not very culturally literate older person, and people you know, or have recently met at a new school or a new job, throw around terms like “reconstruction” (they seem to be talking about something political? that happened in the past); and “moma”, or “the moma” (you’re like huh?); or make a joke about “babe ruth” (a dame? movie star? candy bar?);none of which you really understand. Well, in these instances, because of your ignorance about these terms and names, you are excluded (unless you’re willing to ask) from the conversation, the plans for going to an art museum, the laughter.
So Hirsch propounded this theory about people needing to know a lot of facts, terms, names from an amorphous set of same. That if one knows enough of this stuff they can function in the culture as other people do, but if they don’t know enough they’re excluded from participating, even if they want to.
Hirsch is certainly given credit for the introduction of the term into the social sciences, and it’s generated a large amount of interest, commentary, probably criticism, in the past quarter century, at least in the U.S. And Hirsch himself has remained quite visible in the area, being the founder and chairman of the Core Knowledge Foundation. (Not to be confused with the U.S. “Common Core” initiative in public school education – though obviously there is a close connection between the theories involved in both cases.)
See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E._D._Hi... for Hirsch, and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural... for Cultural Literacy (the term and the area of study in the social sciences).
The reviews
I'm putting this combined review on “Test Your Cultural Literacy” (the only one of the three NOT written by Hirsch) for two reasons. First, it's also the only one that I've actually read, and second, it's the most fun of the three. By the way, there are newer editions than the one I'm reviewing, which is also a little newer (by four years) than the one I actually have.)
The two books I have other than this one are by Hirsch himself.
The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy (1988)
(This is a link to the book - not to a review.)
The subtitle of the book is “What Every American Needs to Know”. Two comments on that.
By the way, the book does have an index, which facilitates looking up the cross reference terms, or just any old name or whatever which a reader might not know. And though that latter function is supplied by the internet nowadays, it really is true that not everyone has access to the internet, at least not all the time like I do.
A First Dictionary of Cultural Literacy (1989)
(This too is a link to the book - not to a review.)
The subtitle of this book says it all: “What Our Children Need to Know”. It’s about half as long as the previous book. It’s split up into almost all the same chapters, leaving out only the first two: The Bible, and Mythology and Folklore (interesting!)
Of the five terms shown in the example above, two “Douglas, Stephen” and “Lincoln Douglas Debates”, have been dropped from the youngsters’ book. Here’s the one the kids read about Lincoln.
As well as an index, this book has a six page Guide to Further Reading, consisting of books “appropriate for ages six through 12”. These are put into fourteen categories, obviously differing from the chapter headings.
Test Your Cultural Literacy (1988)
This book, the one where the current review has been placed, is by Diane Zahler & Kathy A. Zahler. The authors acknowledge Hirsch, and are obviously building on his ideas, but note that neither Hirsch nor the Cultural Literacy Foundation have endorsed the book. I doubt that the non-endorsement is anything negative.
In the Introduction the authors discuss Hirsch’s Cultural Literacy, and refer to three books (one the very influential The Closing of the American Mind) to back up their concern, echoing Hirsch, that the knowledge of this cultural literacy is declining in the country.
The book consists of 14 tests, with subject matter extracted, combined and rearranged from the two books above. The Tests have names like “The Food of Love: Music” and “A Well-Turned Phrase: Quotes, Phrases, and Aphorisms”.
Each test consists of fifty multiple choice questions. (I remember writing my answers on separate sheets of paper when I took them, and wouldn’t be surprised if I still have those papers around.) Of course, being multiple choice, guessing is both allowed and encouraged, since the “scoring” for the quiz is simply two points per correct answer, with overall assessments ranging from “90-100: Excellent. You are on your way to true cultural literacy.” to “Below 60: Time for literacy training. See the Bibliography at the back of this book.”
At the end of each test there’s a seven-eight page section called Explanatory Answers: not only the correct answer, but a few words about why it’s the answer, and anything else involved that’s really basic.
Example: Here’s two questions from the World Literature test.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Previous review: One Fat Englishman
Random review: Sartoris
Next review: VF#3 The Syllabus
Previous library review: First Dictionary of Cultural Literacy yeah, well if you've read the above review, don't bother looking at this one, it's the same only less.
Next library review: The Crooked Timber of Humanity
NOTE: There are parts of this review in my separate reviews for the other two of these three books. But they have nothing that this review doesn't have.
Cultural Literacy??
What does Hirsch mean by “cultural literacy”? Here’s an example that illustrates. Suppose you’re a younger person, or a person from a minority sub-culture (American Indian, inner city migrant, etc) or a not very culturally literate older person, and people you know, or have recently met at a new school or a new job, throw around terms like “reconstruction” (they seem to be talking about something political? that happened in the past); and “moma”, or “the moma” (you’re like huh?); or make a joke about “babe ruth” (a dame? movie star? candy bar?);none of which you really understand. Well, in these instances, because of your ignorance about these terms and names, you are excluded (unless you’re willing to ask) from the conversation, the plans for going to an art museum, the laughter.
So Hirsch propounded this theory about people needing to know a lot of facts, terms, names from an amorphous set of same. That if one knows enough of this stuff they can function in the culture as other people do, but if they don’t know enough they’re excluded from participating, even if they want to.
Hirsch is certainly given credit for the introduction of the term into the social sciences, and it’s generated a large amount of interest, commentary, probably criticism, in the past quarter century, at least in the U.S. And Hirsch himself has remained quite visible in the area, being the founder and chairman of the Core Knowledge Foundation. (Not to be confused with the U.S. “Common Core” initiative in public school education – though obviously there is a close connection between the theories involved in both cases.)
See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E._D._Hi... for Hirsch, and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural... for Cultural Literacy (the term and the area of study in the social sciences).
The reviews
I'm putting this combined review on “Test Your Cultural Literacy” (the only one of the three NOT written by Hirsch) for two reasons. First, it's also the only one that I've actually read, and second, it's the most fun of the three. By the way, there are newer editions than the one I'm reviewing, which is also a little newer (by four years) than the one I actually have.)
The two books I have other than this one are by Hirsch himself.
The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy (1988)
(This is a link to the book - not to a review.)
The subtitle of the book is “What Every American Needs to Know”. Two comments on that.
1. This book, as well as the other two reviewed here, is very much U.S. oriented. However, it’s fair to add to that comment that Hirsch is not someone who believes that only information about the U.S. is needed by U.S. citizens. There is a large body of knowledge about other nations, other histories, people, art, literature from places other than the U.S. All these things Hirsch believes are needed for participation in American culture.Okay, that said, what’s in this book? It’s divided into 23 chapters, from The Bible to Technology, including such as: Proverbs; Literature in English; World Literature, Philosophy, and Religion; World History since 1550; and Physical Sciences and Mathematics. Each chapter, in turn, has a short introductory essay on why that area of human endeavor/knowledge is important. Then follow an alphabetical list of specific terms and names, each with a brief explanation and cross references. For example, in the chapter on American History to 1865, the entry Douglas, Stephen A. is
2. There is an unstated assumption, clearly indicated by this subtitle, that “every American” needs to participate in the “American culture”. This can certainly be argued about. Why can’t an American citizen opt out of American culture? Does someone doing work with the poor or the homeless in the inner city need to participate in American culture? How about a tribal elder on an Indian reservation? Or a musician fully participating in the African American sub-culture in America? Do all these people need to participate in the “American” culture, which one would suppose is predominantly defined by the groups holding power in America?
A political leader of the nineteenth century, known for twice running against Abraham LINCOLN – for a seat in the SENATE from ILLINOIS in 1858, which he won, and for the presidency in 1860, which he lost. The two engaged in the LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATES over slavery and other issues in 1858.Note that this very brief explanation, while far less informative than the Wiki entry for Douglas, is enough for cultural literacy purposes, especially if the capitalized terms are already known, or looked up if not known.
By the way, the book does have an index, which facilitates looking up the cross reference terms, or just any old name or whatever which a reader might not know. And though that latter function is supplied by the internet nowadays, it really is true that not everyone has access to the internet, at least not all the time like I do.
A First Dictionary of Cultural Literacy (1989)
(This too is a link to the book - not to a review.)
The subtitle of this book says it all: “What Our Children Need to Know”. It’s about half as long as the previous book. It’s split up into almost all the same chapters, leaving out only the first two: The Bible, and Mythology and Folklore (interesting!)
Of the five terms shown in the example above, two “Douglas, Stephen” and “Lincoln Douglas Debates”, have been dropped from the youngsters’ book. Here’s the one the kids read about Lincoln.
Abraham Lincoln was president during the CIVIL WAR and one of the greatest American leaders. Born in a log cabin in Kentucky, he educated himself and became a politician and lawyer in Illinois who was respected for his sincerity and character. As president, he opposed the extension of slavery and fought to preserve the UNION. During the Civil War, he issued the EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION, which led to the end of slavery in America. His GETTYSBURG ADDRESS and his Second Inaugural Address, in which he urged the nation to reunite in a spirit of forgiveness, are among the finest speeches in American history. After the war, he was assassinated by JOHN WILKES BOOTH.The entry on Lincoln in the prior book is about three times as long.
As well as an index, this book has a six page Guide to Further Reading, consisting of books “appropriate for ages six through 12”. These are put into fourteen categories, obviously differing from the chapter headings.
Test Your Cultural Literacy (1988)
This book, the one where the current review has been placed, is by Diane Zahler & Kathy A. Zahler. The authors acknowledge Hirsch, and are obviously building on his ideas, but note that neither Hirsch nor the Cultural Literacy Foundation have endorsed the book. I doubt that the non-endorsement is anything negative.
In the Introduction the authors discuss Hirsch’s Cultural Literacy, and refer to three books (one the very influential The Closing of the American Mind) to back up their concern, echoing Hirsch, that the knowledge of this cultural literacy is declining in the country.
The book consists of 14 tests, with subject matter extracted, combined and rearranged from the two books above. The Tests have names like “The Food of Love: Music” and “A Well-Turned Phrase: Quotes, Phrases, and Aphorisms”.
Each test consists of fifty multiple choice questions. (I remember writing my answers on separate sheets of paper when I took them, and wouldn’t be surprised if I still have those papers around.) Of course, being multiple choice, guessing is both allowed and encouraged, since the “scoring” for the quiz is simply two points per correct answer, with overall assessments ranging from “90-100: Excellent. You are on your way to true cultural literacy.” to “Below 60: Time for literacy training. See the Bibliography at the back of this book.”
At the end of each test there’s a seven-eight page section called Explanatory Answers: not only the correct answer, but a few words about why it’s the answer, and anything else involved that’s really basic.
Example: Here’s two questions from the World Literature test.
11. Who was Jorge Luis Borges?Fun and educational!
a. a Spanish novelist of the sixteenth century
b. a Mexican poet and diplomat
c. an Argentine short-story writer
d. a Chilean playwright
14. Marcel Proust is famous for writing
a. a collection of poems called the Flowers of Evil
b. a hymn to the joys of unconventionality and sexuality
c. a seven-part novel about memory and time
d. all of the above
and the answers:
11. (c) Jorge Luis Borges (1899-1986) wrote poetry and essays before turning to narrative fiction. His stories, some of which are translated in a collection called Labyrinths (1962), feature experimental structures and highly compressed symbolic patterns.
14. (c) Remembrance of Things Past (1913-1927) is the master-work of French novelist Marcel Proust (1871-1922). The narrator’s memory is involuntarily triggered by inanimate objects, and he also deliberately scrutinizes his past to make sense of experiences he had no way of understanding at the time. The author explores the disappointing nature of love, the hypocrisy behind the aristocratic façade, and the need to transcend time to find essential meaning. The other works alluded to are by Charles Baudelaire and Andre Gide.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Previous review: One Fat Englishman
Random review: Sartoris
Next review: VF#3 The Syllabus
Previous library review: First Dictionary of Cultural Literacy yeah, well if you've read the above review, don't bother looking at this one, it's the same only less.
Next library review: The Crooked Timber of Humanity
September 14, 2025
It was fun to pick up this book from time to time to see how my 77-year-old brain is functioning. I have been a life-long learner and teacher and read over 600 books a year now that I have all the time in the world that I want... I usually only missed one or two questions out of 50 about American history, geography, literature...... My downfalls were computer science and physics.... I am of the generation who were never taught about computers, we simply one day had a computer in front of us and told to follow a particular business website. After that we were self-taught and I cannot say how grateful I am to be able to order books from my library, listen to music and audiobooks and answer virtually any question that pops into my mind. Physics was a month-long part of a special math and science course over 60 years ago. Not in my skill set. Recommend this book or one like it. Kristi & Abby Tabby
July 6, 2017
Easy trivia quizzes covering various fields including American history and literature, world history and literature, geography, mathematics, science, economics, civics, music, and art. I scored 96's and 100's on these quizzes and my boyfriend did even better probably because the quizzes are skewed for middle class Americans. Actually very little international history, art or literature. But fun to take and test your overall knowledge. It was an easy thing to do on the 4th of July.
October 15, 2020
Despite reading mostly online these days, this is one of those (physical) books that I, occasionally, read for a refresher of cultural literacy. In my opinion, this is a must-read because this book is very informative and gives you a mental exercise.
March 7, 2018
Excellent mental excercise.
September 27, 2019
Great questions. Makes you think and brush up on info you may have forgotten.
March 17, 2010
Good survey of core knowledge covering the fields of art, architecture, religion, civics, music, food, literature, geography, science, quotes, math (hmmm, think I'll flunk that chapter!), technology, and economics.
The most fun I've experienced "taking a test" in a long time!
The most fun I've experienced "taking a test" in a long time!
June 16, 2016
Not too difficult trivia quizzes on Art, Geography, Myths, etc. All based on a rather horrible oppressive definition of the cannon of general knowledge middle class educated Americans "should" know, but fun to try to do with friends nonetheless.
November 21, 2010
I didn't get to the last two tests, but I am DONE with trivia for a while. A good overview to help you figure out what you missed out the first time in school.
September 1, 2016
I've enjoyed using this in Middle School classrooms for fill-ins in odd moments.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews