Otto Dix Essay

Don’t leave me here alone.’ The narrator simply shakes him off and moves on. The soldiers have been trained like beasts and they have been dehumanised; they have been taught that no life is to be spared. Death is now the norm and they have been desensitized to it. The narrator relates an incident where he volunteers for a raid on the German trenches. He experiences much trauma; he kills a soldier, Karl. Karl’s death is terrible- the bayonet is trapped in Karl and eventually the narrator has to shoot him. When he returns to the trenches with two German prisoners he tries to suppress what has happened: ‘It is better not to think’. The narrator knows that he would indubitably go insane if he thinks about his action. Karl’s death epitomizes the fact that soldiers on both sides are killed in horrific way for no discernible reason. There is definitely nothing glorious or heroic about war.

This work evoked strong fascination within me – I have always been fascinated with war. I have also specifically been particularly fascinated with gas masks and the concept of trench warfare. Dix’s portrayal of the battlefield from his first-hand experience in fighting in this war comes off as extremely grim; from the presence of barbed wire to what is left of a tree on the right side that gives off an appearance similar to that of Satan’s pitchfork, Dix is giving off a graphic representation of war that is blatantly grisly – he is not hiding the fact that there is death along the battlefront and it is something that is occurring in massive proportions. Deriving from that observation, killing others is nothing to be proud of. It is essentially murder,

The thought of art is more than what you see it is what you feel and what you learn from looking at it. Art can heal the soul and create and new outlook on images we may see every day. Sadly, we may not always see the art in things, pieces, or, humans.

An artist's job is to interpret, and express the aspects of life in a creative fashion. War has played a big part in shaping our human history, and many artists have portrayed their feelings about art through paintings, and even monuments. Whether it be to show; the joy of victory, the sorrow of defeat, or to educate the public on the gory realities of war. Art about war can also show us a great amount of history of the kinds of weapons that were used at the time. It is necessary for artists to interpret, and criticize all aspects of life; even ones as tragic as war, It can make the public more aware of what goes on in times of war.

In Champagne, Jünger relates a bravery that, despite injury and brutal images, does not fade throughout the war. Jünger writes about the men around him who “seemed to cower while running at full pelt, as though under some frightful threat. The whole thing struck me as… ridiculous…seeing people doing things one doesn’t fully understand .” He recalls his own humor toward trench warfare and his sense of fearlessness, describing “boredom in the trenches as more enervating for the soldier than the proximity of death .” Jünger describes numerous accounts of physical injuries, including his own, as well as encounters with the dead and dying, however these are always very straightforward descriptions. He writes that he and his comrades “…pinned our hopes on an attack… .” His greatest remorse was for “…the incessant trench-digging ” that was unnecessary and overtiring. Even in light of gas attacks, Jünger “occasionally left [his mask] behind in [his] dugout, and used its case…as a container for sandwiches .” It was not until witnessing the death of many men that he felt he was taught a lesson.

Since the beginning of time, artists have labored extensively to find innovative ways to convey sentiment, passion, and feeling. Telling stories and trying to unlock the minds of people through different avenues of artistic labors. Art touches and affects people in unique ways; it can have special or unusual meaning on the person depending on how one views it. Artists’ rendering of their art is interpreted in numerous ways by others who view it unless it is explained by the artist on its meaning giving a clear example of what they are portraying. Two people looking at the same painting, sculpture, portrait, or photo may come to different views on the arts meaning even though they are looking

In both Battle Scars and All Quiet on the Western Front the soldiers haft to go through horrific physical wounds. One of these wounds are lost of limbs. When “Kemmerich” “lost his foot” none of his comrades dared to tell him

7. “The essential act of war is destruction, not necessarily of human lives, but of the products of human labour. War is a way of shattering to pieces, or pouring into sphere, or sinking in the depths of the sea, materials which might otherwise…make the masses to comfortable.”

War is not one of the most pleasant images this world has seen. Usually it is regarded as one of the most

War is a curse because it separates families, makes people become senseless to killing and causes soldiers to become guilty for things that were out of their control.

The war continues to rage, but now that the United States has joined the Allies, Germany’s defeat is inevitable, only a matter of time before German will have to surrender” (All Quiet on the Western Front). During one battle, the allies use chemical warfare against the Germans, and Paul is exposed to the Mustard gas and has been given fourteen days to leave, but he does not because he’s afraid of not fitting in with society and knowing what to do with himself, so he stays and fights. For over four years, Paul has been fighting the greatest war in the 20th century, but on Paul is finally killed in October, 1918. Later that day, the army reports only one casualty and calls it “All Quiet on the Western Front”, which is very intriguing because no shots were fired and both sides weren’t engaged in a fight, Paul seemed to have died on the most peaceful day of the war. Paul and his friends all died during the war, but died together, and the one thing that they foresaw as the enemy was death. Death was all around them and they needed to survive as a unit, but death was taking them away one by one until, Paul dies on the most peaceful day of the

“Art is an irreplaceable way of understanding and expressing the world. There are some truths about life that can be expressed only as

In John Berger’s essay “Ways of Seeing,” he shares his view on how he feels art is seen. Mr. Berger explores how the views of people are original and how art is seen very differently. By comparing certain photographs, he goes on to let his Audience, which is represented as the academic, witness for themselves how art may come across as something specific and it can mean something completely different depending on who is studying the art. The author goes into details of why images were first used, how we used to analyze art vs how we do today, and the rarity of arts. He is able to effectively pass on his message by using the strategies of Rhetoric, which include Logos, Pathos, and Ethos.

As the war was developing the pressure to take part in conflict grew increasingly. After training , Owen was labeled a second lieutenant. All his romantic notions was destroyed by the reality of war, water-logged trenches, barbed wire, bombardments and machine guns. After a near death experience Owen was transported to a hospital with concussion. But he still had the images of his many brothers and conrades laying motionless around him.

“Painting today is pure intuition and luck and taking advantage of what happens when you splash the stuff down. “- Francis Bacon. However when I learnt more about history of art and the way each movement and happenings in the world inspired artist to make new works, I was able to see much more than just a canvas with random paints and sketches. The interesting part about this concept is that each piece of art could be interpreted in many different ways. In contemporary art there isn’t right and wrong, each of us view and find different meanings and connections with artworks.