Romanticism

Are you more a product of the Enlightenment or Romanticism? Explain. Use specific examples from your life to illustrate.

I have to admit that I didn’t think I was a romantic at all. I tend to always look at things at the as a more disciplined and structural point of view. But, as we went through the class discussions between the two I have learned (like I always have in this class) that I am more of a Romantic than I thought I was. I guess you could say it came from past experiences that I tend to shut off my emotion side and not even dare to touch it with a ten foot pole. Lately I have been slowly accepting certain experiences and feelings to go through my life, which I would not have dealt with years ago. And I think this class was one of those things in life where you dreaded it, but it ultimately became your favorite. Not because you’re learning about art or humanities, but because you’re learning more about yourself and how the lesson plan brings it out. Anyways, that’s not really what this blog post is really about. When we took the How Romantic Are You?  quiz I what I thought I would end up with was completely different from what I actually did. And it was a good thing! I think one thing that stuck out to me the most was the love of nature. I could really connect with the painting Wanderer Above the Mist because it reminds me of when I’m out camping in the wilderness and I get up early just to watch the sun rise and I can see the foothills and valleys below where I am and there is like a dewy mist that slowly rises and disappears as the morning goes on and it’s just beautiful. It’s like the fact that man did not make it, but God (or whatever deity you believe in) made it for us, humans, to enjoy. We take so much for granted and we are so busy with lives to live that we don’t stop and take the time to smell the roses or appreciate the nature around us. It’s when I am out in nature surrounded by things man did not make that I feel closer to God, not it a church listening and following. It’s a place where I feel a connection with Him more strongly than I would anywhere else. And while being a Romantic, it just takes me a moment to listen to what my heart wants and just go for it that has put me where I am and probably where I needed to be. Another thing I have learned about myself during these discussions is that I’m not weird for having such strong feelings, emotions, or feelings. It pretty much comes natural when you’re a Romantic. It’s crazy how certain things will happen and it will either give me great joy or hurt my heart to witness/be a part of. And when some decisions are made I tend to go with my gut and what I feel is would be right to do. I could go on and on about how I am a Romantic with connections to my life, but I’ll call it good for now.   

Baroque Blog Post

So, I decided to talk about option two where the question was, Is our society more Baroque or more Renaissance? Be specific in your answer. Justify it using the way we talked about both Baroque and Renaissance in class and using specific examples from contemporary society.

As I thought about our discussions in class about both time periods, I hate that I have to choose one. I'll explain how I think the world is both (if you want me to choose one, let me know and I'll work on it instantly). So, I think the world is both a Baroque style and a Renaissance style because that's just how the world is. It may have been one or the other at some point in history, but it's the fact that we have now gone through both of them that the world itself has taken something from both time periods and created what we have today. There are some parts of the world where Renaissance comes out and some parts where Baroque comes out. As we discussed in class Renaissance is all about perfection, naturalism, simplistic and a few others. That is where certain things like the forest, clothing styles, and forms of art are. They all represent naturalism, simplicity, and perfection. Forests can't be more natural unless they are fake. And Baroque is more about being in upfront and in your face. And as I'm typing this, I thought about our discussion in class and I think I made a connection (I could be wrong). But our discussion about choosing between beauty or truth just got me thinking that Beauty is compatible with the Renaissance. Because Renaissance was about being poised, symbolic, ordered, and perfection that is what Beauty is about. Being symbolic and perfect can be very pleasing to the eye. Where the Truth is compatible with Baroque because it is in your face and more realistic. It's what one of the students said today (I forgot his name, Oops) there is the Beautiful Lie or the Ugly Truth. Baroque could be more like ugly truth, it's there and it won't go away because it is what it is. The Renaissance is more like the beautiful lie. It's only there to please the eye or ear and it doesn't have to be the truth, it just has to be beautiful. That's what I think the world is. I think it is both Baroque and Renaissance in many different aspects of life/ the world.

Renaissance Post

For this Renaissance post I chose to write about Leonardo Da Vinci’s The Last Supper. Out of all the

paintings to choose from what I really connected with this painting. So as part of this post I guess I will

answer the required questions. As we discussed in class the way the painting is looks like the table is

elongated (since it really is across a big wall) but the background looks like the room is longer so the table

should be that way too since it would seem logical. But the table and the windows also create a positioning

or vanishing point so your eyes are automatically drawn to the middle of the painting right to Christ. I would

have to say that the colors, lines, and forms are there because it would just be a plain bare wall of nothing if

all three of those weren’t there. They create the painting, that’s what every painting creates. Lines, forms,

and colors and paintings coincide with each other to create art. Da Vinci create depth with along the walls

and the back windows to create the illusion that the room they were in must have been really huge if it looks

that long with that wide of a table. In one way the painting is a product of its own time is what we talked

about during class. The people in the painting are poised and have so much order to it that it fits perfectly. It

represents perfection and idealism of renaissance art all while being so symbolic of the Church and what they

thought of as the last supper with Jesus. But what I love most about it is the fact that it’s so simplistic with

just the men, a giant room, and a table that that’s all it needs. Some of the Baroque versions of this painting I

thought were too much, they may have seemed more candid but also a bit more complicated. Da Vinci’s

version is just so simplistic that it represents Renaissance so great. But while talking about this painting you

cannot not see the blending of math and science with art. All of the lines and forms create something

mathematical whether it be a triangle, the vanishing point to the middle of the painting or the position of each

person creates enough balance to show that while they are having the last supper Christ is in the middle and

always will be.

Greece Blog Post

As I thought about what to write in this blog post I kept coming back to the sculpture of Laocoon and His Sons. The the question that kept on going in circles in my mind was, Why? Why do I keep on thinking about this sculpture? What is so fascinating about this sculpture that makes it stand out to me? I couldn't really answer these questions without knowing the history behind the sculpture. So from my novice research the history behind this sculpture is that Laocoon was killed after trying to expose the “fakeness” of the Trojan horse by trying to hit it with a spear. The snakes were allegedly sent by Poseidon and was interpreted by the Trojans as proof that the horse was a sacred object. Historians do not know when exactly the sculpture was made but have a rough estimate of 42 to 20 BC. It was also unearthed around 1506 in a vineyard. Honestly, my research did not really help me in my process of answering questions. So what do I like about this sculpture? I like the expression in Laocoon's face. I like how it shows the pain that he goes through while being attacked by the snakes. But I can also see the pain he has in his expression for his sons too. The look on the sons face show the feeling of somewhat betrayal because of their father. I think that the detail in the hair of Laocoon is amazing. I love it. I think it may serve as a purpose of warning. Not as in a dark warning, but as a warning of art. If you were going to ruin something that dealt with the Trojans the gods are going to put their foot down and do what they need to in order to stop it. (That may not be true, but it's what I think of its purpose.) It all has a connection within each other. I honestly can't really connect the sculpture with my world views and today's world view. I view it as a piece of history. I think of it as if we forget the past then we will repeat it in the future. Ancient Greece may or may not be true, but I believe it is true. I believe that if we forget these sculptures, even if the story is true or not, we'll most likely repeat it. Poseidon may not make snakes attack you but it's the fact that if we don't study the pain and anguish and fear on Laocoon's face then we don't know where we have been and where we can go. On a weird note if I ever got the chance to stand in front of Laocoon and His Sons, I would most likely just stand there forever and take in the beauty that it has to offer.  

Happiness

Which theory of happiness in your opinion is most helpful to the world and which the least? Explain your answers.

Well, this just may be a tough one to decide on. The world can work with either Hedonism, Epicureanism, and Stoicism or all of them. There is just no way of knowing. But, obviously since this is a response for my own opinion I would have to go with Stoicism. Then again, I believe that is because I am a stoic. I believe that there is happiness in the world, but there is also pain. There is no way that people can live a happy life without pain. (There probably is but that's not what this is about, right?) I believe that even if there is pain we can cope through it by ourselves or together as a community. For instance, there have been certain situations in the world where devastating things have happened and there really is nothing we (the world) could have done about it. (i.e. Natural Disasters). In those situations I believe the stoic method is most the only way to believe in happiness. That through sadness we can cope with what happened, band together as one and become happy coping with the pain. I know that's not a really good example since these methods are mostly for physical pleasure and pain, but it can go the same way physically. I also do believe that there are some instances where too much pleasure can become painful. And that there are other instances where too much pain can become pleasurable. For those who love pain so much that it can be pleasurable for them, I personally, think that it's a tad weird. But hey whatever floats your boat, right? Enough rambling. To sum it all up, whether it's physical or other types of pain there can be pleasure too. We just have to cope through the stages of pain/life to get us to the happiness that waits on the other side.

Into the Woods 2

I have to admit that I actually really liked this show. At first I thought it was going to be boring and kind of a
waste of time, but I really did enjoy it. The play was funny with a few sad events, but with the questions about how the characters can relate to real life it sort of put things into perspective. But that can be a whole different blog of itself if we break down each character and their part in the story and how they relate. So let's just get down to the rest of this movie and the prompt that I chose.

Near the end, the witch says to the other characters still alive "You're not good, you're not bad, you're just nice. I'm not good, I'm not nice, I'm just right." What's the difference between nice, good, and right? And which is better (and why?)?

As always the difference between all three of those are different between each person and their mindset. But for the majority of the population I would have to say that the difference between  nice and good is that anyone can be nice. But anyone can be good too, right? Even though a person can be nice there is a slight chance that they are not good. There are people that use their "niceness" for bad things. But there are also people who can use their "goodness" for bad things. But then where does right fit in? Right?Just because you're right doesn't mean that you're nice or that you're good. There are a few times where the witch would say the things that everyone was thinking but nobody wanted to say it. And she was right. She was a witch and "supposedly" the bad guy, but she was right. Personally, I think that being right is better than being nice and/or good. Everyone can be good and nice or both, but there are a few people in certain situations that will be right. Not that their way is right, but the fact that under any circumstances they are brave enough to say what others are thinking. Some people could go as far as saying that they are "mean" and "rude" or other negative suggestions, but it's the fact that they, and I, are willing to put ourselves out there and clear the air. That is what I think is the difference between good, nice, and right.

Into the Woods 1

Alright, I 'm not going to lie. The first time I watched this movie I had a little difficulty paying attention (Thank goodness Netflix had it on instant!) After I watched it the second time, I thought about what was required and what we should be thinking about while watching the show and how we thought about it and could relate it to our real life. I thought about the first prompt for awhile and I have to say I have no idea what the woods mean. It seems like it could be anything you think it would represent whether it be representing the journey through life from point A to point B or it just means that it gives the characters time to wander around in life looking for what they set out to have.

I, personally, could relate more to the second prompt of proverbs than the other. One proverb that stuck out to me was when Jack said "The difference between a cow and a bean is a bean can begin an adventure." Why did it get my attention? It made me start thinking that a bean is something that can start out small and turn into a tall wild tree with branches going from one direction to another. (That's how we are, right?) We start as a little single/multi cellular organism that becomes fertilized and then grows into a human being that has a life where they are searching for the right answers to their own questions. That's what a bean does in a non searching type mode, right? I mean, they get planted, add some water occasionally and BAM! they turn into a bean stalk the creates its own beans and grows up to the sky and all over the ground. We, human beings, pretty much do the same thing. Just add water(life situations) let us create our own 'beans'(results/knowledge) and we can pass it on to others so there is more knowledge all over. What does the cow have to do with the proverb? Honestly? I have no idea. Unless the cow is somehow representing some other significance that I cannot figure out.

Another proverb that I like was when (I can't remember the character's name) says "The harder to get, the better to have." It reminds me of certain times in my life (I'm sure I'm not the only one) where the road to get what I wanted looked so long and tiring that there were times where I just wanted to quit and never try again. But knowing that the harder I work for my goal (of whatever it is) the closer I will be to enjoying my goal and knowing that many people are struggling with a similar road and I know how and what to help them with to get them to reach their goal just like others did for me.

This movie was actually enjoyable and had many references to life itself. It definitely made me think about how to respond for this blog post and I hope you enjoyed reading and hopefully it makes sense too.