They are asking you to explain how art is used to express the world. For example, take a look at art created during times of war. Pablo Picasso's <em>Guernica</em> is an anti-war painting depicting the Spanish civil war in 1937. Literature is major in depicting traditions, and culture. <em>Bless me, Ultima </em>is a novel by Rudolfo Anaya that depicts Chicano culture and heritage and how that contrasts living in a small town in New Mexico in the 1940s. To explain certain time periods, one can always look at the art made during those times. Art always reflects the world.