Introduction to Humanities II

Today the theory we briefly discussed was the Semiotic. The art assigned was the Baroque. We followed the notes I have posted and talked about C.S. Pierce, who I briefly contrasted with George Lakoff who we have previously discussed. The Baroque art was Handel's Messiah - the Hallelujah Chorus. Of interest is the way the music emphasizes the message of the music - King of Kings for ever and ever. Contrast this with living in a democracy! To envision how music might be used to transform the political passions of people I read some of Martha Nussbaum's book Political Emotions where she begins with the argument that Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro espoused the principles of equality and fraternity that would within a few years be the main ideas behind the French Revolution. Could music really have this kind of impact? To think about this I asked what kind of meaningful moments in contemporary art are most significant for you? I thought of when Anakin becomes Darth Vader.