Here’s the paragraph that introduces Stubb, in Herman Melville’s MOBY DICK. Stubb was the second mate. He was a native of Cape Cod; and hence, according to local usage, was called a Cape-Cod-man. A happy-go-lucky; neither craven nor valiant; taking perils as they came with an indifferent air; and while engaged in the most imminent crisis of the chase, toiling away, … Read More
Amazingly Vivid Characters in “Jane Eyre”
An illustration from the Book Jane Eyre is Reading in Chapter 1, “Bewick’s History of British Birds” Here are the very first paragraphs of “Jane Eyre” by Charlotte Bronte. There was no possibility of taking a walk that day. We had been wandering, indeed, in the leafless shrubbery an hour in the morning; but since dinner (Mrs. Reed, when there … Read More
Emotional Insight About the Quest for Beauty in Life, from Painter Jan Van Eyck
For me, the way into the appreciation of this painting is through the faces. Chancellor Rolin is on the left. He’s the wealthy and influential minister who hired Jan Van Eyck to paint this. He’s gazing at the supernatural visitation on the right with a severe and attentive look. To me it feels as though the world of the holy … Read More
Thanks Sonya!
Love books about musicians and Conquest at http://t.co/TPQ3Hjx48b is a good one.@VikRubenfeld — Sonya Weiss (@SonyaWeiss) August 17, 2013
Cezanne’s Breathtaking Painting, “Lake Annecy”
This one goes out to my Twitter friend @KnitSix, who also likes Cezanne. This Cezanne painting is breathtaking, even as an image on a web page. You feel exactly the beauty of seeing that same scene for yourself. Cezanne painted the view from his hotel room. What’s so fascinating, of course, is that you could take a photo of the same … Read More
“Acquainted with the Night” – Big Emotional Insight from Robert Frost
This one goes out to my Twitter friend @TeresaFederici, who also likes Frost. As regular readers of this site are aware, one thing I do here is to search out big, easy-to-get-with examples of emotional insight in art – examples you can look at briefly and immediately say, “Wow, I get that. It has a huge meaning to me that … Read More
Emotional Insight About Serenity in a Painting by the Great Henri Rousseau
Here we have two very famous paintings by the amazing Henri Rousseau: “The Snake Charmer,” and “Tiger in a Tropical Storm.” (Note: we also looked at “Tiger in a Tropical Storm” in a previous post.) Putting these two paintings side-by-side is going to help us home in on the emotional insight in each one. Look at “Tiger in a Tropical … Read More
Emotional Insight in an Amazing Painting by Rousseau
This is one of Rousseau’s most famous paintings – “Tiger in a Tropical Storm.” Rousseau’s paintings pack a big emotional wallop. You feel the fear, the desperation of the tiger. The white light on the top of the tiger’s head and on the nearby leaves shows the light of a lighting bolt that is alarming him. You feel sympathy for the … Read More
Da Vinci’s “The Last Supper”
Today we’ll have a look at one of the most famous paintings of all time, Da Vinci’s “The Last Supper.” It depicts the moment when Jesus has just informed the disciples that one of them will betray him. The first thing you notice, as a way of finding your way in to the emotional meaning of the painting, is that … Read More