Humanities An Introduction

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Humanities An Introduction

• A Brief look at the Humanities

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The Humanities An IntroductionThe Quest For Self

• The Humanities A Study of Values
• What is humanities?
• The humanities are those studies that are
  directly concerned with human values. Unlike the
  sciences, which are expressed through numbers and
  symbols, human values can be perceived, felt, and
  expressed in subtle and enduring ways.
• In the medieval period the word Humanities
  distinguished that which pertained to humans from
  that which pertained to God.
• Humanities covers a broad area of human
  creativity but are distinct from mathematics and
  the hard sciences.
• The separation between the humanities and the
  sciences is illustrated in the way values work
  differently in the two areas.

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Humanities and Science

• The separation between the humanities and the
  sciences is illustrated in the way values work
  differently in the two areas.
• Both the scientist and the humanist must make
  value judgments. The development of powerful
  weapons is seen as a positive development for the
  scientist - because of the many possibilities the
  development of the weapon might bring.
• On the other hand the humanist might see the
  development of powerful weapons as a bad thing
  that will eventually affect or even destroy a
  culture, people and or an entire life style.
• The humanists say, what we need is a study that
  will get us closer to ourselves. Of the many
  ways to study an approach to the humanities is
  through art and the subtle enduring ways values
  are expressed in the arts.

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A Matter of Taste

• Taste is an exercise in the choice of values!
• People are often quick to say they like or
  dislike a piece of work because of taste. An
  there is no accounting for taste.
• The taste of the mass public shifts constantly.
  It does not matter if it is in fashion,
  programs, slang words or terms, etc., it will one
  day go out of style. Examples the cabbage patch
  doll, the pet rock, the eight ball, gold teeth,
  mini skirts, the thong, etc.

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Regardless of your field

• Everyone can and should be educated about the
  arts and should learn to respond to as wide a
  variety of the arts as possible
• Because when we do there is a change within us -
  something has been added to you.
• Many facts are involved in the study of the arts.
  
• We can verify the dates of Beethovens birth and
  death and the dates of his important
  compositions, as well as their key signature and
  numbers. We can investigate the history of jazz
  and the claims of Jelly Roll Morton for having
  been its inventor.
• We can make lists of the Impressionist painters
  and those they influenced.

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It is more than just facts

• There are oceans of facts attach to every art
  form. But our interest is not in fact alone.
• What we mean by a study of the arts penetrates
  beyond facts to the values that evoke our
  feelings -- the way a succession of Eric
  Claptons guitar chords when he plays the blues
  can be electrifying or the way song lyrics can
  give us a chill.
• In other words we go beyond the facts about a
  work of art and get to the values implied in the
  work.
• Knowledge about a work of art can lead to your
  knowledge of the work of art, which implies a
  richer experience.

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This is important

• Knowledge about a work of art can lead to your
  knowledge of the work of art, which implies a
  richer experience.
• THIS IS IMPORTANT as a basic principle since it
  means that we can be educated about what is in a
  work of art, such as its form, shapes, and
  objects, as well as what is external to a work,
  SUCH AS its political references.
• Artistic Form Form is the interrelationships
  of lines, color, light, textures and shapes.

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Some basic terms

• Form -- of any painting can be analyzed because
  any painting has to be organized
• Perception -- Frequently, we need to know
  something about the background of a work of art
  that would aid our perception.
• Composition is basic to all the arts. To
  perceive any work of art adequately, we must
  perceive its structure. Examine the following
  poem--- by e. e. Cummings.
• Abstract Ideas and Concrete Images
• Cummings poem presents an abstract idea fused
  with a concrete image or word picture.

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What makes it art?

• It is concrete because what is described is a
  physical event a falling leaf.
• Abstract idea on the other hand deal with words
  or terms such as love, hate, indecision,
  arrogance, jealousy, ambition, justice, civil
  rights, etc.
• What is a work of art?
• A work of art is often said to be something made
  by a person. Not natural beauties. Instead it
  is of human creation!
• Identifying Art Conceptually
• Criteria for determining whether or not something
  is a work of art
• 1. That the object or event is made by an artist,
• 2. That the object or event is intended to be a
  work of art by its maker
• 3. that important or recognized experts agree
  that it is a work of art.
• Mass produced works do not qualify as works of
  art.

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Identifying Art Perceptually

• Perception, is what we can observe and
  conception, is what we know or think we know,
  they are closely related. Does it possess
  artistically perceivable qualities?
• 1. Artistic form All objects and events have
  form. Form is the interrelationships of part to
  part and part to whole. Perceptible unity!
• Artistic form distinguishes art from objects or
  events that are not works of art.
• 2. Content Content is the meaning of artistic
  form. The meaning!
• 3. Subject Matter is the content or meaning of
  the work of art is never directly presented in a
  work of art
• 4. Participation We must not only give but also
  sustain our undivided attention. Only by
  participation can we come close to a full
  awareness of what the painting is all about.