Laocoon and His Sons - 919 Words

This essay is an attempt to address the marble sculpture commonly known as Laocoon and His Sons, and why exactly I believe it to be a work of high art, of great value and significance to the species. Laocoon and His Sons is a marble sculpture representing a scene that is a part of the tale of the siege and invasion of Troy. Laocoon was the protagonist in a play by Sophocles that is now lost. He was also written about by Virgil. The statue itself is one of the most famous sculptures of Greek and Roman antiquity, its subject is Laocoà ¶n, a Trojan high priest, who, along with his two sons, is – according to legend - attacked and killed by two snakes, or sea serpents. The tale is known as myth, but its content may have symbolic roots in actual†¦show more content†¦History is hearsay. We can’t be sure. One of the pieces defining characteristics, what makes it such a marvel, is how the physique is anatomically perfect. This speaks of a highly developed culture, with an intricate understanding of anatomy and physiology. But, also of a culture that privileges physical strength and beauty. The Greeks of the time were either artists or warriors, or often both, so strength and beauty were central in their world. Laocoon and His Sons is a much more naturalistic piece than earlier Greek works; in which the figures were often idolized; lacking luster, life, emotion, humanity. Cleobis and Biton, a set of sculptures from the Archaic Period, exemplify this quite well; posing, rigid, golem like figures; lacking the humanity they are supposed to represent. The Hellenistic baroque style of Laocoon and His Sons gives us a much more true-to-life representation in comparison to earlier works. This work has inspired artists and regular humans alike down through the centuries, one of whom it is partic ularly well known to have influenced greatly was Michelangelo; as can be seen in some of his pieces; e.g: The rebellious Slave. I summation, I think this piece is truly of note to art historians. Above, I have highlighted some reasons I think this is the case. Bibliography: Virgil, (reprint) 2003. The Aeneid. London: Penguin Classics. Pollitt, J. J. 2006. Art in the Hellenistic Age. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 5 Pliny,Show MoreRelated Polykleitos’ Bearer and Laocoon and His Sons Essay1812 Words   |  8 PagesPolykleitos’ Bearer and Laocoon and His Sons Polykleitos’ is a Roman statue. It is made out of marble and it is 6 feet 6 inches tall. The statue is of a male who looks to be athletic someone who works out. The statue is standing in a contrapuntal position; it has its left leg slightly bent witch causes his foot not to be flat on the platform under him. That position helps the statue stay balance. It is not rigid. The statue has no facial expression. It is serious. It eyes are deep andRead MoreAnalysis of The Famous Sculpture, Laocoà ¶n and his Two Sons Essay examples1786 Words   |  8 PagesThe piece I decided to analyze is the famous sculpture, Laocoà ¶n and his two sons. I decided on this particular piece for a few reasons, one being the emotion we see on the subjects’ faces, and the other being the importance for future art. When I began this research I could not have possibly understood the relevance this piece had on the art that was yet to come. The Hellenistic period of Greek art spans from the time of Alexander the Great’s death in 323 to 30 B.C.E. (â€Å"Hellenistic Period† 1)Read MoreThe Classical And Hellenistic Period1098 Words   |  5 PagesDionysus. â€Å"Zeus gave Dionysus to Hermes to protect the baby from Zeus wife, who was jealous† because Zeus was unfaithful to his wife Hera with Dionysus’s mother, Semele (Bergman). Hermes, the messenger of the Greek gods, is sculpted leaning against what appears to be a tree covered in draping. His right arm, that is broken, reaches upwards as if he is holding something. His left arm, holds a small child, Dionysus, who reaches towards something that Hermes may have been holding. Dionysus is the godRead MoreExamples Of Heroes Of Beowulf1503 Words   |  7 Pagesbe a descendent from Cain, son of Adam and Eve, who murdered his brother Abel. The author writes, â€Å"†¦his [Grendel] glee was demonic†¦before morning he would rip the life fr om limb and devour them [Danes warriors], feed on their flesh..,† which gives a clear depiction of how gory it was when Grendel struck the hall at night (Heaney, 49). Beowulf exhibits the characteristics of bravery and courage when he first arrives at the mead hall to meet King Hrothgar; by expressing his desires to fight off GrendelRead MoreSummary Of The Snake In Book Two Of The Aeneids1373 Words   |  6 Pagessnake attacks from hiding, as did the Greeks from the â€Å"womb† of the Trojan horse. Subsequently, brutality as an attribute of the snake is imposed on the scholars consciousness in Book Two of The Aeneid through the account of the destiny of Laocoon and his two sons. Hence, the snake is an appropriate analogy for the fundamental character of the Greek invaders (brutality), their preferred means (ambush), and their ultimate instrument of destruction (flame). But the snake is an ambivalent image. ApartRead MoreLaocoon’s Children and the Limits of Repre sentation Essay examples1228 Words   |  5 Pagesrendering of children in art forms during Hellenistic times. This idea is then divided into different sub-categories: Laocoon group depiction of children, the different versions of children, and the viewer’s interaction to the role of children in Greek and Roman mythology. With respect to the first sub-category that is listed, the sculpture of the struggle of Laocoon and his Sons is used to underscore the ideals connected with children. It is in the sculpture that we see Laocoon’s son’s depictedRead MoreThe Laocoon Group1229 Words   |  5 PagesThe Laocoon Group from page 96 in our text (Fig. 3.30). This statue depicts a scene from Virgil s Aeneid. The scene takes place shortly after attempting to warn the Trojan s not to bring the horse into the city, Laocoon goes to the altar of Poseidon with his sons to make a sacrifice when all three are attacked and killed by two sea serpents sent by the gods. Thi s was because of the warning and it is even mentioned that is specifically for throwing his spear at the horse and piercing it. Read MoreLaocoons Influence on Renaissance Artists2087 Words   |  9 PagesThe desire and urge to establish stronger connections with the classical past brought about the search and discovery of many ancient manuscripts and artworks. One of the most celebrated discoveries occurred during the height of the Renaissance: The Laocoon. Perhaps one of the world’s most famous Hellenistic sculptures, it was originally located in the palace of Titus. It was then lost for over a thousand years before its rediscovery in 1506. Pope Julius II immediately acquired it, and displayed it inRead MoreCompare/Contrast 2 Ancient Sculptures782 Words   |  4 Pagesleft). This statue represents an eternal existence reflected in its emotionless calm and enduring serenity. In this statue Menkure and His Chief Queen from the Old Kingdom’s 4th Dynasty are depicted; it is thought to have originally stood on the processional causeway leading to Menkure’s pyramid at Giza. However, the statue was discovered buried with him inside his tomb. â€Å"It is believed to have been the first double statue of its kind made.†This sculpture shares all of the conventional qualities commonRead MoreEl Greco : The Greatest Spanish Painter Of The Era2129 Words   |  9 Pagesspent approximately half of his life traveling and apprenticing in Italy. El Greco had traveled to Rome, where he was influenced by the Florentine and Roman Mannerism techniques. As El Greco traveled through Italy he worked alongside the famous artist Titian in his studio in Venice. Other artists El Greco worked under include Tintoretto, Jacopo Bassano, and Veronese. El Greco’s exploration of art through Europe finally brought him to the most influential location of his career, Toledo in 1577. In

Essay on The Prosecution and Tragic Death of Aaron Swartz

In light of the recent prosecution and tragic death of Aaron Swartz, it is my belief an formal examination of the current legal processes is required. But first, the events leading to the current moral turmoil must be reviewed. After illegally downloading millions of articles from a digital library (JSTOR) with the intent to distribute them online, computer programmer and political activist Aaron Swartz was caught and arrested by MIT authorities. Under the â€Å"Computer Fraud and Abuse Act† Aaron Swartz was federally charged with numerous counts of Wire Fraud, Computer Fraud, and Unlawfully Obtaining Information from a Protected Computer, Recklessly Damaging a Protected Computer† (â€Å"United states of,†2011).hese charges carried the potential of†¦show more content†¦However in Aarron Swartz case where the amount of files were retrieved he did not receive a similar punishment because of his methods used. Now with the rise in computer crime it is difficult to measure the impact inflicted. However in the case of Aaron Swartz his crime has been described as trying to put someone in jail for allegedly checking too many books out of the library† (Declan, 2013). However beca use of the current copyright laws in the â€Å"Computer Fraud and Abuse Act† he was prosecuted differently. It is my opinion that in light of the significant threats posed by anonymous we need to examine whether an abuse of justice was committed. I contacted a Professor Jonathan Simon at University of California, Berkeley who specializes in Law and Social Policy to provide a third party perspective on this matter. In his famed novel â€Å"Governing Through Crime† Professor Simon examines the relationship between the fear of crime and the increase in Prosecutorial Authority. Historically speaking, prosecutors possessed limited power but were intended to represent the public. However, following social and political declaration of a war on crime, prosecutors were shifted into the political spotlight with additional legal powers. During this progression a form of accountability and oversight was not implemented proportionally. Simon specifically describes this concern

Chemistry by Graham Swift, Snowdrops by Leslie Norris,...

Chemistry by Graham Swift, Snowdrops by Leslie Norris, and finally Superman and Paula Brown’s New Snowsuit by Sylvia Platt. How do the authors of the anthology deal with the subject of change? In this essay I am comparing three stories together. These stories are ‘Chemistry by Graham Swift’, ‘Snowdrops by Leslie Norris’, and finally ‘Superman and Paula Brown’s New Snowsuit by Sylvia Platt.’ I will investigate how the stories are similar and different, and also how they come across to the reader. I will explore the techniques they use and how each author deals with the subject of change. ‘Chemistry’ is about a boy recalling his childhood and that sees an ‘invisible’ bond between himself, his mother, and his†¦show more content†¦So we see from the beginning these three stories share similar themes of childhood experiences. Chemistry is a very depressing story, the boy loves his grandfather, and he sees a triangle bond between himself, his mother, and his grandfather. The three go to the pond together to play with the boy’s boat; he sees that the trip the boat makes across the water is on an invisible bonding line. One day the boat sinks, the boy is heartbroken, and not soon after his mother’s lover Ralph invades and takes over the house, forcing Grandfather into isolation in his shed. Grandfather doesn’t seem to mind being in his shed, he sees it as ‘freedom’ and shows the boy some chemistry. He tells the boy a valuable lesson that everything can change. Snowdrops is also quite a depressing story, it is misunderstood until the end what is going on in the story. At the beginning a funeral was mentioned but seems it does not have any relevance to the story. At the middle of the story the mother asks if Miss Webster was in school, which she was not. When Miss Webster does turn up she is wearing a ‘black frock’ (any relevance?) and she makes sure that they see the snowdrops at the same time the funeral passes the school, she then stands at the gates mourning. Superman and Paula Brown’s new snowsuit’s mood is depressing. The poor girl’s childhood dreams are shattered by horrible documentaries of war, and an incident that she was blamed for.

Spin Master free essay sample

1. Describe the key decisions that Harary, Rabie, and Varadi faced in the start of their company. Looking at the decision environment, were these more programmed or non-programmed decisions types? Spin master adapted to several strategies from which they gained a lot of success along with some which led them to being unsuccessful. Harary, Rabie, and Varadi started this company â€Å"spin Master† with the intentions to generate a set of long-term brands and be able to sustain a permanent place within the global toy market. Since this was the start-up of their company the 3 friends were faced with having to make key decisions. Firstly, they had to figure out a way to introduce the product they had made and find a way to market that product. Spin Master soon accomplished this by the company called Roots Canada LTD. this company was a perfect match for the product because they both followed a similar theme, â€Å"urban adventure image† both being environmentally friendly. We will write a custom essay sample on Spin Master or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Secondly, they were faced with having to figure out how they were going to manage the enormous order that they received from K–market. This led the 3 entrepreneurs to come together and make a decision on moving from their small kitchen production to a factory with larger accommodations so that it was fit for their 200 working employees and so that they were able to start the production of such a large order. Lastly, the biggest and most important decision they were faced with was having to create a new product that would be as successful as their first, â€Å"the earth buddy† they had to be innovative and think of a product that would be as captivating as the pantyhosed sprouting head. This was resulted with the production of the devil sticks that were a very big success in its first 6 months and gained them $1. 8 million in sales. Since Spin Master was a new company and had been built by 3 friends from University, all the decisions of the company were made by the young new entrepreneurs, which led them to make some very risky decisions for the company. Looking at how the company’s decisions were based on a risk environment and how they were faced with unstructured problems, the company made more non-programed decisions. Spin Masters decisions were being made by the young entrepreneurs, they were neither structured problems nor did they occur over and over again and because these decisions were being made for the first time as the earth buddy was the first product that the 3 entrepreneurs thought to release it brought for them unstructured problems which had to be solved by meeting the demands of the unique situation at hand leading them to making more non-programed decisions over programmed decisions. 2. As a result of Spin Master’s success, which decision errors and traps might be a problem for them in the future? As a start-up company Spin Master has had many successful achievements, however there is still a chance for them to encounter problems in the future resulting on a negative impact on their companies’ outcome. One of the problems that they may encounter would be the representative heuristic. This heuristic is about decisions being made based on similarity to others situations. This eventually could cause Spin Master a problem in the future because they may make decisions based on representativeness of their previous successful products. Since this heuristic helps one to come to a decision rapidly, it may lead the company to make errors or even over evaluate the probability of their future products. To stay clear of this error the company should comprehend that prior knowledge of a success product will help them create innovative products but might not result with the same outcome as their previous one. Another problem for spin master in the future could be the availability heuristic. The use of this, decisions being made based on recent knowledge and incidents that they have, may lead to unsuitable resolutions because their current information may not be applicable with the new products that they are dealing with now. Spin Master is a company that is known to establish successful product to its consumers. This, results Spin Master to make new profound decisions and increase effort in making a new product. However, this can eventually lead the company into a trap called escalating commitment, this is when a company chooses to continue a course of action even though it is not appropriate for the situation at hand. Keeping this case in mind, Spin Master may actually want to continue to make their decisions based on the way they were made in the past because they were successful with their pervious products, however this validates that they choose to take the same extent of risk that they took with their other products. This could possibly be a future problem because if the product is not similar to the ones previously made then the same solution or method may not apply to an entirely different product even though they might perceive it to be similar as to their rest.