Q2CQ
Q1: “Representations of the
physical world are best left to painters; for poets the inner world of the human spirit
is best conveyed in a language shaped by ideas and feelings rather than the forms,
shapes and colors that inspire the painter” (Moramarco 24)
Q2: “So this child stands sentinel by the roadside
With doll and lamb in a brown study, waiting
For a transcendent school bus to carry her away” (Seelye)
C: I feel that the “Mourning Picture” and the poem written by Seelye work very well individually. The painting, if standing alone, offers the viewer to draw a number of their own conclusions and stories to create their own understanding. Likewise, if the poem were standing alone, the reader would be forced to create their own images in their head to make sense of the poem. However, the two of them in harmony work amazingly. Moramarco claims that representations of the physical world should be left to the painter, which I do understand, but I feel that poems can use the physical world to help portray the emotional world. For example, when Seelye states that the child was standing with a doll and a lamb in a brown study, he is attempting to portray the physical world. However, this portrayal helps us to draw conclusions on the emotional state of the child and the setting. Further, the way a painter chooses to portray the girl and the parents in the painting give rise to the emotional state of the three of them. So, while I agree with Moramarco that these ideas work well separate, I do believe that the best poems and paintings incorporate both the physical and the emotional world.
Q: How would Moramarco feel about the “Mourning Picture,” where there is both a painting and a poem? Would he believe that both disciplines work well together because they stay within their disciplines? Or, would he urge that these two work better separate and combining them hinders their success? Further, I would love to know how the painting originated. Was the painter inspired by shapes and colors, or was the painter inspired by a story they felt the need to visualize?
