SOURCE OF HUMAN DIVISION 5
Running head: SOURCE OF HUMAN DIVISION 1
Source of Human Division
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Source of Human Division
Over the centuries, human beings have shown their divisions through popular culture, works of art as well as their communication channels. Necessarily, some of these divisions developed in the earlier ages are still present in contemporary society. Such divisions as in reasoning are developmental; while others like races are permanent leading to their long-term existence. The selected source of division for this paper is reasoning. The age of reason was a period of significant changes in the philosophies, religion, and contemporary art characterized by great enlightenment from 1700 to 1789 (Matthews, Platt & Noble, 2014). During this period, the humans showed their divisions with groups disregarding superstitions and seeking the truth. Furthermore, there were several emerging trends which divided the people based on their reasoning. For instance, the growth in decentralized power, demand for social justice, and the rebirth of aristocracy divided the world into those supporting the trends and those who did not. The divisions in reason led to the emergence of two styles or art, the neoclassical and the rococo styles (DeMaria, 2016). In this regard, this paper discusses reason as a source of social division and illustrate the responses made to this division over the years using various forms of art such as architecture, music, and paintings.
Enlightenment among the European countries resulted in the emergence of the neoclassical and the Rococo styles of art in response to the reasoning division. The informal ornate style began in France at the beginning of the century and was less oppressive compared to previous art styles such as the baroque. The thinkers of the enlightenment period rejected traditional beliefs and superstitions basing their ideas on the truth gained through investigation and observation (Matthews, Platt & Noble, 2014). The thinkers held that humans became better through studying and practicing various forms of art, such as literature and music. One significant writing responding to the reasoning divisions was the Conversations on the Plurality of Worlds, a favorite science book written by the philosopher, Bernard le Bovier de Fontenelle. In the text, the author tries to enlighten the public by attacking the traditional social evils and advocating for the support of leaders who would bring change in the society. The book portrays the different stands held by groups of individuals concerning political regimes.
Another significant piece of art developed in the Rococo style is the Schönbrunn Palace garden in Vienna. Since it is constructed from the palace ruins, the garden has standard features which characterize Rococo art (Tricoire, 2017). The garden was designed and built by Johann Ferdinand Hetzendorf von Hohenberg and represented a shift from the traditional architectural designs to more modern designs. The structure represents the division in thinking among designers and builders from the conventional structures to more impressive and long-lasting constructions. In essence, Johann Ferdinand Hetzendorf von Hohenberg was a pioneer in the architectural evolution due to his skillful sketching of the garden’s blueprints.
On the other hand, the neoclassical emerged soon after 1750 to challenge the prevalent rococo art style. The advocates of the neoclassical style maintained a backward glance with a unique form of antiquity fueled by archeological discoveries (Matthews, Platt & Noble, 2014). The revelations of underground cities divided the Europeans with a significant number of educated individuals pitting differences concerning the sources of classicism. In this case, both the neoclassicists and the rococo advocates differed significantly based on their reasoning about contemporary art as well as the ancient grandeur. The neoclassical interpreted different pieces of art as well as the archeological discoveries differently from the other styles. Jacques-Louis David’s The Death of Socrates 1787 painting is one example of the neoclassical piece of art (Paine, 2017). The neoclassical architecture entirely relied on the traditions and ancient literature as sources of inspiration, contrary to the Rococo art, which was more graceful. In this case, the painting is based on Plato’s dialogue Phaedo. The picture shows the division evident even in the current world, where different pieces of art rely on a variety of issues for inspiration and interpretation differs from one group to the other depending on their reasoning.
The music played during the age of reason was mainly French. Both Rococo and neoclassical styles influenced music significantly. The florid music was entirely a reaction against the baroque styles of art. However, the classical style introduced after 1750 emphasized on the form and structure. Franz Joseph Haydn’s Surprise Symphony No. 94 was a famous symphony that focused on the structure (Schofield, 2015). The style of music deviated from the freestyle forms observed in Rococo music. His music shows the differences held by people with some maintaining the formal music structures while others become creative with new genres and styles to supplement the traditional forms.
In summary, social divisions have been in existence for a long time with differences in reasoning being a significant part of the divisions. The two main divisions that emerge from differences in thinking are the neoclassical and Rococo styles of art. The advocates of baroque and neoclassical styles disagreed with superstitions and sought truth as seen in the various pieces such as the Surprise Symphony and the Schönbrunn Palace garden. The significance of social divisions can be seen even in the modern world.
References
DeMaria Jr, R. (2016). British literature 1640-1789: an anthology. John Wiley & Sons.
Matthews, R. T., Platt, F. D., & Noble, T. F. X. (2014). Experience humanities volume II: The Renaissance to the present (8th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Paine, T. (2017). Thomas Paine. Significant Works: Common Sense/The American Crisis/The Rights Of Man/The Age Of Reason/Agrarian Justice. Lulu. Com.
Schofield, R. E. (2015). Mechanism and materialism: British natural philosophy in an age of reason. Princeton University Press.
Tricoire, D. (Ed.). (2017). Enlightened Colonialism: Civilization Narratives and Imperial Politics in the Age of Reason. Springer.