How to Find Theme in a Work of Art

A Instance Report on Fine art equally a Literary Theme

Music, painting, interim – art comes in many forms and tin can have a profound impact on our lives. It tin also be a treat for the reader'south imagination when information technology takes centre stage in a story. This never happens by coincidence, though. When art appears in fiction, information technology always has a purpose and therefore resonates with characters and readers alike.

Allow'south call art our canvas for today's edition of Theme: A Story'due south Soul. Using novels from two different genres, we'll proceeds a better understanding of fine art as a literary theme and learn how we tin can explore it in our own piece of work. See what similarities y'all tin can find as you read the examples beneath.

Examples of Art as a Theme in Oscar Wilde'south The Picture show of Dorian Grayness (Philosophical / Gothic Fiction)

In The Movie of Dorian Gray, Dorian adopts the worldview that dazzler and pleasure are all that'south worth pursuing, and wishes that a portrait of himself will age in his stead. He then pursues a life of hedonism and watches as the portrait corrupts itself to reflect his sins. The portrait, notwithstanding, isn't the novel'due south only case of art. In fact, the concept of art's dazzler and purpose is discussed throughout the story.

In Chapter One, the painter Basil Hallward talks at length nearly his craft. Every bit he explains, "'[E]very portrait that is painted with feeling is a portrait of the creative person, not of the sitter. The sitter is merely the accident, the occasion. Information technology is not he who is revealed past the painter; it is rather the painter who, on the colored sheet, reveals himself.'" (7) In other words, Basil sees his work as a reflection of himself and the things he deems beautiful. It's then personal that he fifty-fifty hesitates to show his portrait of Dorian in public ("'My heart shall never be put nether their microscope'" (thirteen). The thought of art every bit an extension of the cocky – and the paralyzing fear of having one's work critiqued – is all too familiar to u.s. as writers.

Other characters limited dissimilar opinions nigh art. Dorian, for case, finds art very moving. He recalls a visceral reaction he once had to music (21), and becomes upset when Basil threatens to throw out his portrait ("'Don't Basil, don't! Information technology would be murder!'") (30).

Lord Henry Wotton, still, seems emotionally detached from art. He states on several occasions that art is meant only for publicity. He also says at 1 point, "'Art has no influence upon action. It annihilates the desire to act. It is superbly sterile.'" (224) Here, Lord Henry implies that art is just a beautiful object, and that it isn't supposed to arouse feeling or compel us to react – a sentiment that not everyone, especially Dorian, shares.

Examples of Art every bit a Theme in Laini Taylor'south Daughter of Smoke and Bone (YA Fantasy)

Daughter of Smoke and Bone introduces readers to Karou, a blue-haired young woman who was raised by chimaera and has no memory of her origins. When she meets the affections Akiva, she tin't assistance but fall in beloved. Nor tin she fathom the secrets that he'll help her unearth about her past. Despite the chaos and turmoil, art remains a key part of Karou's story.

An art student in Prague, Karou is well-known at school for her drawings of fantastical creatures (a.yard.a. her chimaera friends). Her peers are constantly marveling at her "gorgeously rendered and securely strange" sketches (8). Besides, the chimaera are enamored past Karou'southward craft, but for other reasons: "They liked to run into the normal things: tourists huddled under umbrellas, chickens on balconies, children playing in the park." (34) Only as Karou's fellow students admire her imagination (or what they believe is fantasy), the chimaera appreciate seeing a reality that's unfamiliar to them through her work.

Other fine art forms appear throughout Daughter of Smoke and Os. Zuzana, who is Karou'due south all-time friend and a puppeteer-in-grooming, enjoys all styles of performance fine art. In one scene, she puts on a "trip the light fantastic toe-and-puppet" bear witness with her violinist boyfriend for a oversupply of tourists (180 – 181). Karou'southward mentor Brimstone, on the other mitt, is a resurrectionist. He creates necklaces of gems and animal and human being teeth, and then draws magic from them to conjure new bodies for the souls of dead chimaera – a trade described every bit both cute and terrible (332). Between all three examples – drawing, operation, and "jewelry-making" – readers meet that art tin take myriad purposes, inspirations, and impact on the audience and the creator.

Keys to Exploring Fine art as a Literary Theme

Equally y'all can run across, art plays an integral role in both The Picture of Dorian Grayness and Daughter of Smoke and Bone. No wonder information technology sneaks in equally a literary theme. Hither are some of the means in which it'due south explored:

• Significant Characters and Objects: Both books feature artists as protagonists and/or supporting characters and specific works of art (Dorian'due south portrait, Karou's sketchbook) as important objects to the plot.
• Unlike Types of Art: LikeGirl of Smoke and Bone, The Flick of Dorian Gray highlights multiple styles of art, including painting, poetry, and theater. This allows art to become a prevalent strength in the characters' lives and the story world.
• Inspiration and Creative Expression: Allowing artistic characters to talk over their work – from sources of inspiration to the artistic process itself – can shed light on ane's demand or motivations for creating. This can be washed through dialogue (Basil Hallward in The Picture of Dorian Greyness) or narrative (Karou in Girl of Smoke and Bone).
• Reactions and Emotions: Characters in both novels show a wide range of reactions to art. The blazon of emotions expressed tin can offer insight into one character's views on art likewise as the diverse purposes art can serve.
• Contrasting Opinions: Remember the drastic differences between Lord Henry Wotton's and Dorian Gray'southward reactions to fine art? Showing dissimilar opinions can emphasize the fact that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

In both stories, art is important because it matters to the protagonist. For Dorian, his portrait serves every bit the plot catalyst and the beginning of his downfall. For Karou, her drawing skills are one of her few remaining constants after everything changes. Your own stories on art should also show that art is deeply embedded in the character's life. That manner, it arises naturally as a theme while dazzling your readers with talented, unique characters and increasing their appreciation for inventiveness.

Information technology's Your Plow!

• What stories accept you lot read that explore art equally a literary theme? How does the author reach this?
• Have y'all written a story that involves an artistic grapheme(due south)? What is his / her chosen craft? What inspires him / her to create? How are those creations significant to the story? If yous haven't written such a story earlier, try information technology and meet what happens.
• Exercise y'all depict, sing, paint, or engage in other art forms besides writing? What inspires you to dabble in these areas?

What are some topics y'all'd similar to meet featured at Theme: A Story'south Soul? Share your thoughts by commenting beneath or tweeting me at @SaraL_Writer with the hashtag #AStorysSoul.

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Sara Letourneau is a Massachusetts-based writer who practices joy and versatility in her work. In improver to writing for DIY MFA, she'due south revising a YA fantasy novel and reviewing tea for A Bibliophile's Reverie. Her poetry has appeared inThe Curry Arts Journal, Soul-Lit, The Eunoia Review, Surreptitious Voices, and 2 anthologies. Learn more nigh Sara at her personal blog, Facebook, and Twitter.

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Source: https://diymfa.com/writing/a-case-study-on-art-as-a-literary-theme

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