Required Resources
Read/review the following resources for this activity:

• Textbook: Chapter 15
• Lesson
• Minimum of 1 primary source (from artist)
• Minimum of 1 scholarly source

Initial Post Instructions
For the initial post, select and address one of the following options:

Option 1: Choose a work to discuss from one genre that interprets a work from another genre.

• Include the title, artist, and description of both works.
• Examine how the artist of the second work captured the subject or story of the first.
• Support your point(s) with a statement from the second artist that discusses the influence, reasoning, or interpretation of the original work on the second work.

Click on the following link for examples:

Option 2: Choose a work that is interdisciplinary (incorporates two or more disciplines), such as Hamilton from our lesson this week.

• Include the title and artist(s).
• Examine the genres that are intermingled to create the work.
• How effective is the blending of genres in the work?
• Why do you think the artist used different disciplines in the work?
• Support your point(s) with a statement from the artist and one from a critic.

Option 3: Choose a work of art from any genre that depicts or tells the story of a real life event from any time period, such as The Consecration of the Emperor Napoleon and the Coronation of Empress Joséphine on December 2, 1804 by Jacques Louis David.

• Include the title and the artist and some background of the event.
• What is the relationship between the work of art and the event?
• Did the artist depict the event accurately?
• Does the artist make changes regarding the event? If so, why do you think the artist made these changes?
• Examine the artist’s message in the depiction.
• Support your point(s) with a statement from the artist.

Solution:

For this discussion, I opted to work on the third option. Below is the artwork I selected:

Death of Socrates by Jacques-Louis David

As the name of the piece suggests, it portrays the death of Socrates. Socrates was sentenced to death via poisoning with hemlock in 399 BC after he was found guilty by the Athenian courts (Puchko, 2017). The philosopher had been accused of corrupting the minds of young people and discouraging them from worshiping the gods of the city. As such, the painting does actually capture a real-life event and with some similarities. For one, the artist accurately captured that Socrates was poisoned (Puchko, 2017). We can see him being handed a cup which we assume contains the hemlock poison. Also, it is accurate that Socrates was surrounded by his students at the time of taking the poison. While they were filled with grief, Socrates was not saddened by his demise (Puchko, 2017). He found comfort in his belief that his soul was immortal and as such could continue living even after the physical body died. He also took the poison as he gave a final lecture to his students.

There are also differences in the actual events and the painting. First, Socrates is depicted as being young and significantly fit. It is estimated that Socrates would have been 70 years at the…Please click the icon below to purchase full answer at only $5