The West A Narrative History - 1187 Words

The oil on canvas landscape painting does not reveal the name of the painter, but instead it leaves the observer with several explicit and implicit clues which may lead the viewer a step closer to its creator and its reason for existing. Additionally knowing that the painting was created in France sometime around the mid 17th century narrows it down to a few possible influencing eras. Moreover, having the freedom as a spectator to make assumptions based on legitimate evidence lead me to think critically and got me to figure out the painter’s background information, intended audience, intentions, and etc. The artist’s past can easily be understood due to the fallen Greek-Roman looking architectural structures found lying in front of the sitting man. These kind of constructions weren’t common in mid 17th century France, unlike ancient Greece and Rome. A. Daniel Frankforter, and William M. Spellman, in their book â€Å"The West: A Narrative History, Volume Two: Sin ce 1400 (3rd Edition)† states that â€Å"Excavations at two buried Roman towns near Naples, Herculaneum, and Pompeii, fascinated the reading and traveling public and became â€Å"must see† for aristocratic gentlemen making the â€Å"grand tour† of Europe’s cultural sites.† (494). I believe that the artist had to personally experience the â€Å"grand tour†, because only a strong familiarized individual could successfully revive classical Greek and Roman characteristics and fuse them together with several other styles into one marvelous pieceShow MoreRelatedCritical Analysis Of Lewis And Clark1630 Words   |  7 Pagessimply as the West. This common narrative of the West can be seen in movies, television, and artwork from around the globe. However, many parts of this narrative can be far from reality. West’s A Narrative History of the West, Miller’s Agents of Empire, The Lewis and Clark expedition, and Aron’s The Afterlive s of Lewis and Clark all provide a counter-narrative to the traditional narrative of the â€Å"untouched† West and highlight the importance media has on the public’s interpretation of the West. BeforeRead MoreRise of the West1330 Words   |  6 PagesCritical Analysis: Rise of the West There are many theories and ideas of how western civilization became the way it is today. While some scholars believe it is in one influence of another region, many others can argue that it is certainly just the way the world is supposed to work out. We, as humans, have no control over how our surrounding civilization will turn out nor would we be able to alter many thing that have happened in the past. Robert Marks provides his own examples and theories to proveRead MoreMary Prince Essay1627 Words   |  7 Pagesactually come into force until the 1st of August 1834 and although the many enslaved people in the British West Indies were no longer legally slaves, they were still exploited, inhumanly treated and often forced to work for low wages and inadequate housing by former masters. The text ‘The History of Mary Prince, a West Indian slave. Related by herself.’ was one of many slave narratives used by religious abolitionist 2. groups suchRead MoreThe Enigma Of Russian Identity Essay1561 Words   |  7 PagesRomanov dynasty, the history of Russia has been defined by various narratives. These narratives come from multiple ethnic groups, religious groups, writers, and leaders, which can be illustrated as the puzzle pieces that construct the enigma of Russian identity. Throughout the history of Russia there too has been a push to centralize Russian identity through the principle of Russification. Furthermore it was the push for these multiple narratives to assimilate into one narrative that was the productRead MoreGenre Films Predictability and Formulaicity Essay1598 Words   |  7 Pagesbe predictable and formulaic because the films depict a certain part of the west in American history, so it therefore needs to show a realistic image of the west within all western films, as it is a true time in American history. In both The Searchers and Unforgiven, there was examples of similar iconography, such as guns, and a similar narrative, as they both followed the revenge narrative, this therefore suggests that genre can be predictable as if looking at theseRead MorePost Warhol : A New Idea732 Words   |  3 PagesPOST WARHOL IT WAS NOT UNTIL MID-20TH CENTURY, THAT THE MODERNIST NARRATIVE WAS REPLACED BY A NEW WAY TO THINK ABOUT ART. THE NEW THINKING SUGGESTED THAT THERE COULD NO LONGER BE A MASTER NARRATIVE; COULD NO LONGER BE A SET OF RULES WHICH FORMED A BASIS FOR JUDGEMENT ABOUT ART. IN FACT, THE QUESTION â€Å"IS IT ART?†, MAY HAVE BEEN VIEWED AS MEANINGLESS. A NEW IDEA EMERGED: ANDY WARHOL TOLD US: ART IS WHAT ARTISTS DO—AND, â€Å"ARTISTS† ARE PEOPLE WHO CALL THEMSELVES ARTISTS. OR, AS JOSEPH BEUYS PUTRead MoreSignificance Of Marco Polo s Voyages1136 Words   |  5 Pagessignificance of Marco Polo’s voyages to the â€Å"East† for our understanding of world history. The silk routes, has for many centuries, connected the world through a series of overland and maritime routes reaching from China, India, the Middle East and Europe. One of the most significant narratives of the voyage is told through Marco Polo, who had a significant impact on the relationship between the east and Europe and on world history. Polo’s voyages vastly enhanced European knowledge about the east in bothRead MoreSlavery During The Twentieth Century993 Words   |  4 Pagesbetween remembering and forgetting history. The twentieth century narratives trace the history of the Atlantic slave trade through contemporary Africa, reflecting the role of slavery in present day. The works unearth remnants of the past in order to locate African memories in literature and bring them forth from the margins of history. Each author originates from different geographical locations in Africa, which allows various forms of slavery to emerge in the narratives, representing slavery as c ontinuingRead MoreSmoke Signals By Sherman Alexie1051 Words   |  5 Pagescentury. The real history of Native Americans has been stereotyped in movie and the more I learn the more you realize their history has been filled with suffering and injustice, the more I feel the truth of the statement, We pay for the sins of our fathers. Every generation inherits the problems of their parents. Each generation that inherits dysfunctions from their parents have to break free and create a new narrative for themselves like Victor and the way Alexie uses poetry as narrative his film. Read MoreThe Evolution Of Poverty During The Civil War1654 Words   |  7 Pages THE EVOLUTION OF POVERTY IN AMERICA Missy Worrells Modern History 1073 November 19, 2014 â€Æ' The Evolution of Poverty in America Poverty is a hardship that has existed in every milestone of American history. War impacted the economy of the country after the Civil War. The twentieth century would see wars, natural disasters, and economical depressions that contributed to the developing culture of poverty. Poverty in any time period is a shattering experience. While being poor