Humanities 2Introduction

comparing the arts

• music is a temporal art

• visual arts and architecture are spatial arts

• literature is permanent (e.g., books)

• some literature is meant to spoken not read

what is culture

• not strange and highbrow

• derives from human invention

1. jungles are a product of nature

2. gardens are a product of culture

what is a masterpiece

• any work that carries a surplus of meaning

• it sums up the best of a certain age

• consider the Roman Pantheon (126 CE)

impact of Roman architecture

• Hagia Sophia built in the 7th century in Constantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey)

impact of Roman architecture

Il Duomo, 15th century Florence

impact of Roman architecture

U.S. Capitol building, 18th century

how to study “a surplus of meaning”

• Two steps:

1. what is the work and how was it achieved

2. how does the work relate to history

what is the work itself• what are its formal elements (geometry, color,

style, etc.)

• what is the work’s function

• The Iliad was meant to be spoken aloud. What does that tell us about its purpose?

• What is the purpose of our capitol building?

the work in relation to history

• Why did we base our capital building’s form on Roman/Greek antecedents?

• What does that tell us about us?

how to read artworks

• we must consider a work’s form and function

• we must know what something is and its place in historical context

art and architecture• consider how much time and money a culture

spends on art and architecture

• some societies (12th century France) spent large amounts of money on building and decorating churches. Why?

• others (18th century France) built palaces

• How might their values be reflected in these expenditures?

questions to ask• What is the purpose of this

work of art?

• What does it hope to communicate?

• How was it made?

• How is it composed (arranged)?

• Symbolism or meaning?

• see pp. xxviii-xxix

how to listen to music

• origins of music are unknown

• we guess there was a ritualistic or magical purpose

• music still accompanies religious services today

how to listen to music

• Greeks viewed music as a science (Pythagorus)

• They also understood its power to change human behavior (Plato)

• written sources move from monophonic to polyphonic over time

how to listen to music

• before listening:

- determine the historical context

- who wrote it? when? for whom? why?

- if there is a text read it before listening

how to listen to music• while listening:

- try to avoid distractions

- it takes time to listen (there are no cliff notes)

- listen for repetitions and patterns

- try to determine the mood (fast and dancelike or slow contemplative)

how to listen to music• after listening:

- what elements indicate the time in which the piece was written (synthesizers and electric guitars indicate more recent music)

- were there repetitions (form)?

- what instruments were heard? voices?

- what was the mood of the piece?

- was the melody long and flowing or short and fragmented?

how to listen to music

• listen to J.S. Bach Fugue No. 2 (in C minor) from Book I of the Well-Tempered Clavier

• listen for repetitions of the opening melody

how to read literature

• much literature was not meant to be read silently

• plays and epic poems were meant to be read aloud or acted out

• novels may tell us about the times in which they were written

bibliography

• Cunningham & Reich, Culture and Values,Vol. 2, 8th edition, pp. xxv-xvi