Just as literary fiction goes hand in hand with film, often poetry has been linked hand in with art. To explore this relationship and to celebrate the upcoming month of October (truly, the most wonderful time of the year) look at the picture above (Fuseli's The Nightmare). Explicate the painting as you would a poem. What is the painting depicting? What is significant about the title? What are the fears of the painter? What is your impression. Explicate away....
FIRST!!!!
ReplyDeleteok...I think that this picture is depicting a woman who has been over powered by her demons which have cause her to be in great dispare or to have even taken her own life. Whats is significant about the title is that the demon could be part of her every day, "nightmare," and now she might have felt the only way to escape from it is by taking her life which would cause her nightmare to end. I think some of the fears that the painter might have are sleep, demons, and nightmares. This painting gives me the impression that the painter might feel his or her own life was one continuous nightmare and that they expressed what they felt like doing through a painting.-
Brandon Day.
OMGGgg, I have seen this image/painting before. It was when I was researching sleep paralysis, or REM and non-REM sleep. It pretty much says that who ever suffers from sleep paralysis is stuck between actual sleeping and being awake, and if literally feels like something is holding you down, or trying to choke you, or even sitting on top of your chest sometimes, like the goblin looking thing up there. The colors of the painting also make the painting look like it was ancient, like medieval, and the drapes in the background also add to the time period. (Late 1700 right?) Ohh and the title, The Nightmare makes sense, because when stuck between the stages either falling asleep or waking up, you sense something in coming to harm you, and that its insanely close by, and its scary, like a nightmare. I used to think I was dreaming, but my eyes were open, and I was fully alive, and I could see my room, but not the thing that was talking to me or making the weird noises. Studies show that different cultures believe in may different things when it comes to the sleeping paralysis, but it all has one central connection of demons, which can be the thing sitting on the woman chest. The woman looks lifeless, (I mean, seriously, it looks like shes breaking her neck!) which is how you feel, you cant move, cant yell, you can only see, you cant even move your eyes left and right. This is so much. But anyways, the horse in the back coming out the drapes can be intertwined with the night mare. Like horse"mare" and Night"mare", darkness, get it? I also noticed the light against the dark. Maybe that could show the pure against the evil. And on the table there is a book, and a mirror with a vial. Im not sure about the vial, but the book could be a Bible, because i would think that people of religion would be the types to believe in demons. The mirror could be a reflection of what is going on.
ReplyDeleteIt seems as if this terrifying creature is crushing her with evil. Maybe this was the cause of her nightmares, and she wasn't sure and was not able to handle the fine line between reality and her sleepless nights with few but negative dreams. Maybe she took her own life due to the stress and the thoughts of putting an end to the nightmare. The fears that the painter might have may include sleeping due to this demon creating horrifying nightmares that the painter can't seem to escape.
ReplyDeleteWell the woman could have fears when she is sleeping about being over come by demons. I notice there was a horse looking creature in the background but I know what it would resemble. But the title could be that when ever the woman sleeps she has nightmares all the time and that this picture could be what she sees in her nightmares. The creature on her chest could be holding her down in some way and the "horse" or whatever that is is watching over her but not helping? I don't know, lol.
ReplyDeleteThe woman could be having a nightmare or fears of demons taking over herself. Also it could be that her life has turned into a nightmare by the demons surrounding her. The title could represent her every day life and how its a nightmare. The fears of the painter could be that they are having issues getting over the 'nightmares' of life caused by demons all around us.
ReplyDeleteI'm probably wrong because my interpretations are always different from everyone else. But I think that the goblin siting on her is like the "evil" part of her that is pressing her down. All people have a limit to their potential and that goblin represents her limit. Maybe the artist feared horses because they had big widlers and it reminded him of his dad. We did something about fears of horses in Treweek's class.
ReplyDeleteThis painting is depicting a woman being overcome by her demons who may have caused her to commit suicide. Also the demons could actually represent bad influences in her life or bad people who may have tooken her life. The title implies that this woman could actually be his lover or spmeone very close to him that has many demons in her lifr( possibly a mental disease ot bad habits) and this is Fuseli's depiction of his fears for her. Fuseli fears that one day this woman's demons may one day destroy her. My impression of this painting is that Fuseli is warning his viewer that if we let our demons get the best of us, they will sit back and watch as our lives fall apart and we destroy ourselves.
ReplyDelete-Matthew Greene
The name of the painting "The Nightmare" leads to the fact that the painting is exaggerated and abstract because it's something that would occur in your subconscious. I think the painting is depicting a person that is dreaming is being weighed down (because the demon thing is sitting on her chest) by things in her life even while she is asleep. The horse head seems to be watching intently which may allude to the fact that someone always sees what you're doing. I think the painter may feel like sometimes he just can't get away from reality.
ReplyDelete-Lindsey Tonnesen
The painting shows a woman being conquered by her demons while she is asleep. It could even be interpreted that she is dead and the demon/monster is the cause. It is in a triumphant pose on top of her limp body, which shows how it is dominating her. There's also a creepy horse just chillin' next to it....don't know what that's all about. I notice that there is a shadow on the wall behind the monster. I think this shows that in reality, our demons aren't as intimidating as they seem. But certain things in our life magnify our fears and make them seem bigger or scarier. I think the painter is scared of being ruled by his fears in life. And maybe horses... - but the title is significant because it shows that nightmares are just nightmares in the end. They can't harm us and we shouldn't let them affect us. - Barack Jordan
ReplyDeleteI think the women is having a "nightmare" and everything in the painting consist of what her nightmare is about. I noticed shes wearing white which is like a sign of being pure but the demon thing in on top of her like chest which is contradicting. So maybe something to do with taking away her purity. I've heard that horses symbolize something sexual going on also the demon thing being on top of her seems sexual. There is also the shadow of the demon thing which shadows are like evil. I don't think it means that the demon is trying to take over her. I think it has something to do with like her not being pure or innocent anymore like the demon taking away her innocence. All the colors are dark. I don't know what the painters fear might be but it seems like he could be some looser who never gets girls and wants to like take there purity so he makes these fantasy paintings?
ReplyDelete~Haley Rasnick
The painting portrays the Roman Emperor Caligula, lying in a drunken stupor, with a dwarf sitting atop him. Caligula's horse stares with fear at the small man atop his master. But that's just my interpretation. The person on the bed I believe represents a loss of hope, whereas the small figure atop the persons represents fear, as well as the horse, because horses are easily frightened. The title signifies something that we all fear, and something that is inescapable.
ReplyDeleteThe painting depicts a woman with what is possibly a demon sitting on top of her, while a horse is standing behind them with a frantic look. The demon sitting on top of the woman represents that fear has gotten the better of her, as she lies there without hope. Her white nightgown represents her innocence and purity, soiled by the creature sitting upon it. The horse exemplifies fear. The title signifies the terrors that we all experience from the depths of our unconscious during our dreams. The painter fears the hopelessness associated with fear, and possibly the nightmare that he himself experiences. - Alicia Wilson
ReplyDeleteThe painting depicts a women who seems to be having a nightmare. The goblin sitting on her chest could represent evil pressing down on her and overcoming her. The horse like creature in the background is very dark and ghostly. It could represent someone who is watching over the woman. It is very demonic. The title shows how she is in fear and is probably experiencing a nightmare. The author could fear evil taking over them, as represented by the goblin sitting on the woman's chest.
ReplyDelete-Ashley Collins