The Reason Versus Emotion Debate

Why do ordinary, rational, human beings actively and knowingly seek out art that appears to elicit negative emotions, especially as these same people tend to avoid such emotions in other areas of their life? This question formally understood as the paradox of painful art is what Hume effectively attempts to address in his essay 'Of Tragedy'. In this essay I will conclude that Hume's solution to this paradox; that painful emotions elicited by art are converted into pleasurable ones; is indefensible. I will first offer my reading of Hume's solution to the paradox of painful art. I will then argue that Hume fails to give a satisfying account of the process of the conversion he proposes, I will then go onto show that Hume's conversion theory

The painting focuses on the Virgin Mary and two children; one we know is Saint John the Baptist from the title. We can assume that the

Gorgeously. Striking. Grace. The golden painting is taking up by the two most iconic symbols of Christianity: Jesus Christ and Virgin Mary. Christ gently placing a golden grown on the inclined head of the Virgin Mary, who is sitting on the right side of Jesus; her hands crossed over her chest symbolist of humble, reverent and loyalty. This position was purposely set by Fabriano. In Christianity art, position is significant in dividing between good manners and malefactors. For instance, in The Last Judgment by Giotto di Bondone in 1305, heaven was placed on right of Christ, and hell was on the left. This ideology was clearly stated in the bible “...before him shall be gathered all nations:

Therefore, this introduction and analysis of fifteenth-century Italian painting arises from looking at social relations. Through the institutional authorization, Baxandall examines the integration of social, cultural and visual evaluations. The author explores visual art not only from a social construction, but also looks at the major role it plays in social orders such as interactions between individuals or between larger social groups.

This painting consists of two small panels in which one panel depicts the crucifixion of Jesus and the other portrays scenes that associate themselves with the Last Judgement. In the first panel you can see a crowd surround Jesus during his crucifixion. In the background, you can see a clear picture of Jerusalem. On the bottom you can you see five people that appear to be

Art by its nature is a subject of the philosophical, social, economic, political or religious context surrounding its creator. More often than not, a work of art addresses a specific topic or somewhat revolves around a particular person. Therefore, it is impossible to separate the context of a piece of painting, either historical or cultural, to its intrinsic value or the artwork's meaning. On the other hand, different cultures and time utilized specific conventions that govern the representation of objects of creativity. This essay highlights various pieces of art and their relationship to particular cultural, political, economic, or social settings. Moreover, it pinpoints how different times influence art presentation.

An artist has the ability to connect with one’s audience through their art and the obscure connotations that appear beneath it, not just the image that lies on the surface. Artists Jan Van Eyck and Caravaggio communicate these implications through their work, utilising symbols and motifs. Van Eyck’s The Arnolfini Portrait (1434) explores the social status of the time, along with the issue of marriage between two unequals. Caravaggio’s The Beheading of Saint John the Baptist (1608) reflects the world of his time’s attitude on violence and the insensitivity of a positive resolution. Although, these two paintings showcase incredible technique and attention to detail, the context is what is integral to the audience’s understanding of their world

When walking through a museum, one notices the immense variation within every piece. Each work contains one or a few specific themes, and its own unique interpretation of said theme. Common themes may include, but are of course not limited to that of life, birth, beauty, power and strength, heroism, death, and beliefs. In this paper, I wish to focus on the themes of both belief and death within two separate pieces. Within these pieces, the themes of death and belief go perfectly hand-in-hand. The Death of Socrates and The Execution of Saint Barbara both exemplify the conjoining of two themes to create an entirely new idea; martyrdom. Both of these pieces can be found at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.

The two main characters in the painting display elegant mannered poses and all the figures appear arranged in rather unnatural poses. There is a small scene at the foot of the Saint Catherine and Christ figures. This is thought to be the Christ child with the Virgin Mary and grandmother, Saint Anne. Below these two scenes are three smaller bordered scenes. The central one depicts two enemies reconciled by an archangel and the outer ones show Saints Michael and Margaret fighting demons. All these images show the triumph of good over evil, with the middle characters shedding their weapons and embracing. All these small pictures support that the painting was commissioned by Arigoi di Nero Arighetti to celebrate the end of a feud.

1. " Trinity with the Virgin, St. John the Evangelist, and Donors" was created by Masaccio from 1425 to 1428. It's located in the church of Santa Maria Novella in Florence. It is a fresco that measures 21' X 10'5" Masaccio was considered the first great Italian painter of the Quattrocentro period during the Italian Renaissance. His full name was Tommaso di Ser Giovanni di Simone and he was born December 21, 1401 in San Giovanni Valdarno in Florence.

Human emotions remain as one of the world’s biggest secrets. Like sleep, we know what happens to our body when we experience these emotions whether it be a release of hormones or a certain area on the body becomes more sensitive. But we don’t know why we have them, experience them, or what purpose they serve. All we know is everyone’s emotions behave differently. Different types of arts can elicit completely different emotional response from people. Some art may have the ability to appeal to dangerous emotions in certain people. Whether it be the corruption of a once faithful and beautiful young girl, plagued by the desire for romanticism and lofty ideas, or a handsome young nobleman who is obsessed with living life to fullest. Both are fueled by the emotion that a certain type of art elicits in them, leaving them in a never ending chase that ruins there life’s. In the Novels Madame Bovary and The Picture of Dorian Grey the protagonists in these stories perfectly exemplifies the danger of arts emotional appeal by showing the corruption and eventual downfall of two once young and beautiful souls by exposing them to art that pleases dangerous emotions such as desire, pleasure, entitlement and disappointment.

This painting was created during the period of 1495 to 1498.It is a 100% hand painted oil painting painted by Leonardo da Vinci. It is a mural painting known as the Last Supper, which is a masterpiece of the Italian Renaissance. This painting represents the last days of Jesus Christ surrounded by his twelve apostles. Jesus believes that one of them will betray him and as seen in the painting this is their reactions to the news.

There is emphasis on the man in the left side of the image showing the blood stained cloth around the neck. There is also emphasis on the woman with her legs spread apart and back end showing indicating she had been sexually abused. The focal point is on the man in the center of the painting twisting the man’s arm as he being hung.

This piece was made for the Vendramin family, the Vendramin Family was a merchant family in this piece only the males figures are shown. This painting is full of detail, uses realism in the bodies and faces of the people. In this piece there six younger boys that are around three older men, three boys are sitting on the stairs while the rest are standing up all near the altar. Three of the boys are in the left of painting towards the front, the three men are climbing the stairs. The other three boys are sitting and kneeling on the steps. Two younger boys are holding small dogs, also some people in this are looking to their right while the rest are looking ahead probably at something facing them. On the altar there is candles that are lit, in the background is the sky with clouds around it. This work has influenced many other artists and has been a big part of Renaissance art and has been described as “one of the greatest group portraits in

For over two thousand years, various philosophers have questioned the influence of art in our society. They have used abstract reasoning, human emotions, and logic to go beyond this world in the search for answers about arts' existence. For philosophers, art was not viewed for its own beauty, but rather for the question of how art and artists can help make our society more stable for the next generation. Plato, a Greek philosopher who lived during 420-348 B.C. in Athens, and Aristotle, Plato’s student who argued against his beliefs, have no exceptions to the steps they had to take in order to understand the purpose of art and artists. Though these two philosophers made marvelous discoveries about the existence of art, artists, and