Comparing Cathedrals

The Cathedral and Everyday use were both enlightening and intriguing stories. Written by two renowned authors and differs in numerous ways, set out to explain and disseminate its readers to dissimilar characters and themes. Whether fiction, non-fiction, there were meaningful lessons learned from reading both stories. The Cathedral is a story about two friends, a blind man Robert and his female friend who reunited after ten years, even though they communicated by sending tapes and poems. While Everyday use was a story about a woman who had two daughters, Maggie and Dee, with two different personalities. Maggie, who lives at home with her mom was shy and scar by burns she had sustained from a house fire, while her eldest sister

Cathedral, the short story by Raymond Carver is told from a first person point of view through the eyes of the narrator who remains nameless throughout the story. The narrator, for most of the story acts selfish, feels jealousy, and does not want Robert, a blind man, to come to visit, but as the story progresses, the narrator gets to know and understand Robert and for the first time, he begins to see things with a completely different perspective. These changes make the narrator a dynamic character.

The time period between 400 AD and 1400 AD was not a Dark Age for Europe and not a time of cultural decay and decline. It was not a Dark Age for the following reasons: Cathedrale Notre Dame’s construction, the laws of currency that were established, and how Europe prospered during this time period. Cathedrale Notre Dame’s construction showed how far culturally Europe got by the late Middle Ages. “Common features of gothic Cathedrals included architectural innovations. (Document G: Gothic Cathedrals)” This piece of text shows me that Europe developed their architectural design; gothic architecture which originated in France.

The ultimate expression of French Gothic architecture with magnificent stained glass windows lies within the Sainte-Chapelle. Sainte-Chapelle is considered a perfect example of the Rayonnant style of Gothic architecture. Sainte-Chapelle is located within the Palais de Justice complex on the Ile de la Cité, in the center of Paris. King Louis IX commissioned Sainte-Chapelle between 1241-1248 to house his relics and Christ’s Crown of Thorns. Louis IX bought the Crown of Thorn for 135,000 Livres. For comparison, to build the entire Sainte-Chapelle cost 40,000 Livres. Now, Sainte-Chapelle is one of the most visited Catholic Church and considered one of the greatest sites of Gothic Art. The beauty of Sainte-Chapelle is broke down into a few major categories: exterior, lower, upper, and the stained glass windows. Over the centuries, the Chapelle suffered from a fire in 1630, 1776 and from the French Revolution, causing the Chapelle to go under restoration. Although some relics were never found again, some are kept in Notre-Dame Cathedral and the National Library.

Another difference is the elaborate design on the Arch of Constantine while the Arch in Saint Louis is modern and clean. The sides were straight with no designs on them and

While constructing both of these cathedrals there were sculptures created that represented narratives of theology and mysticism. Both were created for a place of worship that’s why sculptures and paintings of religious images were added. This showed a great respect for the belief in Christ and the surrounding believers.

St. Peter’s Basilica and La Sagrada Familia are structures with amazing architecture, but they are much more than just a structure. Both basilicas tell a story about not just the architects and their interests of certain architectural styles, but also about the history and story of Catholicism. La Sagrada Familia and St. Peter’s Basilica are not often compared due to the time in which they were built, as well as due to their different styles of art and architecture. However, despite their very different styles of architecture, they both serve Catholicism a similar purpose by uniting those believing in the Catholic faith in very similar ways by using these magnificent buildings as propaganda in a positive manner.

Looking at the form and layout, both churches follow an aisled basilica plan. It can be seen in St Philibert that its nave consists of extraordinary vaults which consist of transverse barren vaults supported on diaphragm arches. It is also noticed that it includes 3 radiating chapels in the east end behind an ambulatory (which was not found in previous churches). The floor plan in St Sernin, on the other hand, shows a cruciform shape with a nave, double aisles and transepts. The nave here is shown to have a round-arched barrel vault.

I also thought it was interesting to learn that the abbey church of Saint Dennis was the first introduction of Gothic architecture. Another interesting thing that I wanted to point out was, that many of the churches, including the abbey church of Saint Dennis and the Chartres Cathedral, "had lengthy construction histories" (Kleiner 379). But, one church, in particular, had a fairly quick construction time frame. The Laon Cathedral, pictured below, is an example of a church that began construction around 1160 and the construction was quickly completed, by 1200. Besides, Gothic architectural features, the Laon Cathedral also demonstrates some Romanesque features, including, "nave bays with large sexpartite rib vaults" (Kleiner 379). The textbook

The Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Reims, northeast of Paris near Champagne was the coronation church of the kings of France and was an educational and cultural center. Also built of limestone, the architecture of the Reims Cathedral features Gothic style. It symbolizes an Early Gothic, Radiant Gothic and Flamboyant Gothic. The Reims Cathedral depicts a classic harmonic facade containing four levels. Its interior is defined by its towering heights and narrow proportions, and elaborate sculptural works. Because of the high quality of workmanship and materials used, Reims Cathedral features some of the most beautiful gothic art in existence. Five different cathedrals have been on the site on which Reims cathedral now sits since 401 CE. The current cathedral was built in 1211, after the previous cathedral had burned down. The new building was almost entirely finished by the end of the thirteenth century. 88 gargoyles were counted on the Reims Cathedral and are mainly used to drain off rainwater and are exceptional pieces of work, but do show the slight difference between Gothic and Romanesque styles. The stained glass windows are a beautiful part of Reims despite being damaged or ruined several times in the 18th century; the cathedral still has many 13th century stained glass windows, in the upper parts of the nave, choir and transept. On the opposite side of the great western portal, the Great Rose Window, dating from the end of the 13th century, represents “the Crowning

Chartres Cathedral is one of the most significant achievements of all the historical architecture. Additionally, it is entirely preserved with its original details. The unique features of the cathedral are intact, and thus when one visits the place, he or she is likely to encounter the authentic architecture work as it was done many years ago. Chartres Cathedral symbolizes an atmosphere of awe and holiness (Katzenellenbogen, 2). As such, it was built for religious purposes. However, it attracts the nonbelievers as well. As a holy building, it has many glass windows to light the building. Due to its height, a double flying buttresses is used to support the high nave. The cathedral was the first building in history that used buttresses since it was considered as necessary for the peoples’ culture and as a sign of authority. It was built to reflect a symbol of power since the religious leaders engaged in politics too. The cathedral has many statuses that represent the Biblical aspects such as Elijah, Isaiah, John the Baptist, Jeremiah, and Simeon (Katzenellenbogen, 9). The standings portray the Christian faith that was used by the architectures while building the cathedral. The interior floor stands thirty-six meters high and is one hundred and twenty-eight meters wide. The sizes show how vital it is and it can host many peoples who visit for religious functions.

The Interior of the Panthéon is really unique and creative. It is used to accommodate the remains of the great men of France. After that it was adjusted as a pantheon by architect Quatremère de Quincy and since

The clerestory had only small windows to let a decent amount of light in. The exteriors of the cathedrals were plain, had very little decoration, and were extremely solid-looking. Cathedral plans were often regular and symmetrical, making the Romanesque cathedral form known for its simplicity. They were often built in the general shape of a cross, relying on the basilica as a design base. As for the sculptural decoration, Romanesque architects utilized thin, elongated, and abstract figures.

The Notre Dame Cathedral is the most visited tourist site in France, beating the Eiffel tower with 13 million visitors each year. Because it took over 300 years to build, there are many different styles of the architecture shown throughout the building(notredamecathedralparis.com). This structure shows the hardships of war and the enlightened thinking of the Renaissance. Built in 12th century France, the Notre Dame Cathedral is one of the biggest French Catholic cathedrals in France and is still functional as a regular Church(sacred-destinations.com). This gem of architecture is a true wonder and represents the sacred and hopeful times of the middle ages and the renaissance.

The area where the cathedral now stands was originally occupied by the ancient Metropolitan Church of the city under the title Saint Maria Maggiore in 836 (Boldorini 5).The name of the first architect of the Milan cathedral is not exactly known (Boldorini 5). In 1386, Giovanni Galeazzo Visconti, began the restoration project using the Gothic style after severe damage to the building (Benigni). In total, there are 6,000 statues inside and outside the cathedral, with 2,000 of them being a part of the exterior embellishments (Benigni). The design or layout of the interior of the church is that of a Latin cross, and