Humanities 1
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Week 9 Discussion Part TWO: The Garden of Earthly Delights
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For part two of this week’s discussion, please watch EITHER the video on Bosch OR the link for the slide tutorial on the middle panel of the Garden of Earthly Delights.
OR you can do both!
Note how Bosch uses symbolism to convey ideas on good versus evil, and his use of color, specifically the dark reds, are prominent in all his paintings.
INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Please list THREE symbols found within this painting and what they mean.
(This should be at least one sentence for each).
2. Please elaborate on the following questions IN YOUR OWN WORDS:
(At least two sentences per question)
-Do you get an overall feeling of fear when you look at these paintings; if not what do you feel when you look at Bosch’s paintings?
-Why do you think Bosch used such fear symbolism in his work?
-Are our fears the same today or different? Explain your answer.
Your discussion question this week is broken into TWO parts and you will find all the information you need in your Week 9 module:
1. Your first assignment is to experience a simulated witch trial. After watching and reading the material I have given you, please follow the link provided to participate in an online simulation of a witch trial that would have taken place in 15th century Europe. This simulation will give you a deeper understanding of how these accusations occurred and how the element of fear is used to oppress and control people. I included two videos. If you don’t have time to watch both, then I highly recommend watching the one on the Pendle Witch Trial of 1612.
Pendle Witch Trial:
2. Your second assignment is to critique and analyze Hieronymus Bosch’s famous painting, “The Garden of Earthly Delights.” Bosch has been described as a painter of nightmares and has a way of tapping into our greatest fears and so this week we will discover just how much our fears today are still reflected in those painted by him hundreds of years ago. Not only will you become more familiar with his artwork but you will also gain a better understanding of interpreting symbols in art. All the information you will need for this is also in your Week 9 module. I have provided you with a lot of information, but please make sure you watch EITHER the video on Bosch OR the link for the slide tutorial on the middle panel of the Garden of Earthly Delights. This will help you complete the discussion this week.
Week 9: Discussion Part ONE: The Witch Trials
The witch trials during the Reformation would become known as “the female holocaust,” and as you learned in the documentaries, many villages were wiped clean of women. Between last week with the trial of Joan of Arc, and now the witch trials, we see how frightening it is to be misjudged and put on trial for something that you did not do. These medieval witch hunts were about fear, politics, religion, science and magic. But it’s also about words and stories and just how powerful they can be. I think this is incredibly relevant today; not just with modern witch trials that are still happening to people all over the world; but also in the media; when fake news meant to instill panic and fear spreads like wildfire because we feed those flames, just like the flames that were used to execute women.
PART 1:
Before you answer the following discussion question, please make sure you’ve done the previous witch trial simulation. Also found here:
http://departments.kings.edu/womens_history/witch/hunt/ (Links to an external site.)
Take notes as you go along, because you will need to answer the following questions:
1. Did you confess quickly or deny your guilt?
2. What was the final outcome of your decision?
3. What type of evidence did the authorities use against you to accuse you of witchcraft?
4. What kind of crimes did the authorities believe witches committed?
5. What pressure, psychological or physical, was used against you to provide evidence or force you to confess?
6. How were social roles (relationships of people with different status) reinforced, changed, or destroyed by this hunt?
7. Please note if the accused was male or female.
PART 2:
IN YOUR OWN WORDS PLEASE DISCUSS THE FOLLOWING:
What are your thoughts on modern day witch hunts? Please reference the articles I posted in your module titled, “
Witch Hunts Today (Links to an external site.)
,” and “
A Political History of the Term ‘Witch Hunt (Links to an external site.)
.'” How do you think the element of fear is being used to control people today? Media, news, social media, etc.?
These are your thoughts on the material. This is asking you to think critically about the topic and reflect on how we can learn from our history.
Witch Hunts Today: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/witch-hunts-today-abuse-of-women-superstition-and-murder-collide-in-india/
A political history of the term “witch hunt”: https://www.vox.com/mischiefs-of-faction/2018/10/31/18047208/trump-witch-hunt
A Witch Hunt: The following is a simulation of a witch hunt. While this hunt, its victims, and perpetrators are fictional, it is based on actual hunts: http://departments.kings.edu/womens_history/witch/hunt/index.html
Renaissance Revolution: Hieronymous Bosch:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yx5M2um7zjM
The Garden of Earthly Delights:
http://www.esotericbosch.com/Garden.htm
Bosch, the Last Judgment:
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/renaissance-reformation/northern/hieronymus-bosch/v/bosch-last-judgment-triptych-1504-08