Week 5 writing assignment
It was the end of my first quarter at University of Washington - one quarter of Early Fall Start had just ended, and I had several weeks yet before I had to take Physics, Calculus and Programming. Before I had to face my major, and take “real college classes”. I was 18, had a brand new black Mazda 3 and a $200 non refundable food money left on my “Husky Card”. What to do?
Niklas, Max and myself decided that the only acceptable solution to this situation was a Road Trip. It hit us, while on I-90, that if we were we to get on I-5 South, we could just keep driving. And driving. And there was nothing to stop us. We had no commitments, no work, though also no money. We could pack enough food for a few days, pool our money together for gas, and stay in camp-sites along the way. We had a good friend going to school in northern California who we could surprise along the way. It was perfect, and nothing could go wrong.
We really wanted to go spur of the moment, unplanned, but our need for food stopped us until we could “hit up” some UW owned grocery stores and get our ”free food” off of my Husky Card. I also took out all the money I had to my name - a mere $87. I did this at a local ATM so as to avoid detection from my parents who would notice if I used my card in Oregon. We were determined to go undetected.
Thus, that very next morning, we awoke at an ungodly hour -12pm and with the trunk of my car bulging with a tent and a great deal of prepackaged preserved goodness we were off.
The drive through Southern Washington was largely uneventful, with a lot of highway, and worn down towns, strip malls and little else. When we finally reached Portland, we got immediately got very lost, very confused and finally found a smallish looking Motel with reasonable rates and food. Thus, we rested there for the night, our tummies full with a warm home-cooked meal, and the idea that the bulk of our driving was over. Tomorrow would be a day to explore and enjoy our freedom. With that comforting thought, we fell asleep.
The next morning, we showered, ate breakfast and planned out our day. We were to visit the Tillamook factory, and were extremely excited - we all loved Cheese. Laughing and enjoying ourselves, we spilled out onto the street, I with my car keys out and ready to roll. I was sitting down in the drivers seat when I heard someone call my name. I turned to look. Max was staring down at my tire, looking stricken.
“We have a flat.” He said it tonelessly.
“What? No that’s not possible. These tires are brand new.”
“Apparently it is,” Nik added in, annoyingly. “This isn’t a big deal though Kristina, I have Triple A, we’ll just have them solve it.”
So we waited. And waited. Finally “Burt” showed up, tow truck at the ready. We explained the situation, and he attached my car to the back of his truck. And we were off again. And the local Portland driver got lost along the way. So 2 hours later, we finally arrived at a Mom and Pops tire store. There were several customers in front of us, so we waited outside, chatting with Burt for about 45 minutes. Finally it was our turn and they quickly lifted my car up on stilts, removed the tire and began the repair process. They removed two long and sinister looking nails from the tire, and began patching. I went up to the cash register to pay, and they refused my money, saying that it was no problem. Things had begun to look up - perhaps we would be able to visit the Tillamook factory after all that day.
However, shortly into our cheese discussion, the manager approached us holding my tire. He explained that the tire was unfixable because I had driven it on the rim, and I needed a replacement. He also explained that this would be difficult to find as my car was very new.
So we were off again to find a Mazda dealership. Burt at the wheel, and my car in tow. The first two dealerships did not have tires to a 2004 Mazda 3 I with the “Sport Package”. The last directed us to Goodyear, right down the street. We pulled up, and dreading the answer asked for the Eagle RS-A tires. Yet they did have them! And in stock. Our hearts alight, we asked the price. And our hearts plummeted.
“Three hundred and Fifty dollars.”
“Why is it so expensive!?!?”
Looking scandalized, they replied, “The Eagle RS-A is a performance tire. It’s the top of the line.”
I inquired if there were any other tires that we could use instead – cheaper tires. The gentleman replied that apparently there would be an uneven wear pattern, and thus no. Niklas asked if we could purchase a used tire, and he again answered no, the tire was too new.
We went outside to discuss the situation amongst ourselves. We polled our money and found that we had a grand total of $174.82. Not quite enough. At 18 none of us had a credit card, there was going to be no “charging”. Searching for an answer that wasn’t going to come, I opened my wallet one last time. I noticed the gleaming golden edge of an American Express card, limitless and inscribed with my name. An idea formed in my head as I began to pull the edge of the golden solution out further. A bad idea. This was my parent’s American Express Card, for emergencies. Clearly this was an emergency, and normally my parents would have no problem with paying for a flat tire. However, I was in Oregon, without asking their permission – because I had known it wouldn’t have been given.
The beautiful card was slid back into my wallet, and my expression set, I climbed into my lopsided beautiful new Mazda. The spare tire now on, and my useless tire rim in the trunk, we drove in the direction of I-5 North, going no faster than 55 the whole way back.
Writing Journal Questions: What was learned?
I think that I am becoming more comfortable with writing creatively, because I have been having issues with keeping under the page length in the last two stories, which is much more normal for how I write. I believe I have a better understanding of how to write with constraints. I also realize many of my writing flaws, and how terribly difficult it is for me to be descriptive. Its so difficult for me to cut back my writing, too. Apparently I become very attached to every sentence and have to force myself to cut back. Also I become very interested in my own writing, and never want to stop and always feel that I have more to say.
Monday, January 29, 2007
Week 5 Reading Journal
Reading Journal Questions:
The first author, Benvenuto Cellini, was very focused on explaining the facts of his story, as opposed to an emotion or feeling that came across in the Andre Aciman piece. Both appeared to have different reasons for writing these pieces, Benvenuto’s being more of an old man looking back on his life and making sense of it, and looking for meaning. He “name dropped” quite a bit, attempting to make himself and his family appear well connected and important. Andre’s piece, on the other hand, was quite the opposite, he specially detailed the misfortune of his family and how he didn’t have enough money to afford the apartment. It was obvious that the purpose and focus of his story was entirely different, that Andre wanted you to get a feeling from his explanation of Rome, and the fact it was written from his perspective and with his personal input meant that it was simply easier to relate to. Thus, Benvenuto’s piece was more aware of the reader’s presence because he was clearly attempting to leave a legacy, and an impression. Andre’s piece was more convincing and believable because it was more personal and less forced, and I guess just easier for me to relate to overall because it was considerably more recently written.
The first author, Benvenuto Cellini, was very focused on explaining the facts of his story, as opposed to an emotion or feeling that came across in the Andre Aciman piece. Both appeared to have different reasons for writing these pieces, Benvenuto’s being more of an old man looking back on his life and making sense of it, and looking for meaning. He “name dropped” quite a bit, attempting to make himself and his family appear well connected and important. Andre’s piece, on the other hand, was quite the opposite, he specially detailed the misfortune of his family and how he didn’t have enough money to afford the apartment. It was obvious that the purpose and focus of his story was entirely different, that Andre wanted you to get a feeling from his explanation of Rome, and the fact it was written from his perspective and with his personal input meant that it was simply easier to relate to. Thus, Benvenuto’s piece was more aware of the reader’s presence because he was clearly attempting to leave a legacy, and an impression. Andre’s piece was more convincing and believable because it was more personal and less forced, and I guess just easier for me to relate to overall because it was considerably more recently written.
Monday, January 22, 2007
Art History Final Paper: Forum, Markets and Column of Trajan
Kristina Dahlberg
Honors in Rome – Winter 2007
Art History Final Paper: Forum, Markets and Column of Trajan
I: INTRODUCTION
Marcus Ulpius Nerva Traianus, was born September 18th, 53 AD in the city of Italica. Commonly referred to as Trajan, the Roman Empire achieved its greatest historical extent under his rule. Trajan was the son of a prominent Italian senator and general, Marcus Ulpius Traianus. Trajan served in the Roman army and Syrian army when his father was governor of that province. Trajan quickly rose through the ranks, becoming nominated as Consul in 91 AD with Domitian was emperor at the time.
It was at this point that Trajan brought Apollodorus of Damascus to Rome. Apollodorus was a Greek architect, engineer and sculptor who designed Trajan’s forum and Column as well as being widely acknowledged as the main architect of the Pantheon.
Trajan took a significant part in Domitian’s wars along the Rhine River, as well as others under Nerva’s short rule. When Nerva became emperor, Trajan was appointed as governor of upper Germany. Nerva was the first emperor to select his successor by potential rather than paternal relation. Nerva was also considered to be the first of the “five good emperors of the Roman Empire”, a series of five emperors all chosen by adoption and known for less tyrannical and oppressive policies. Nerva became emperor after the murder of Domitian, and his seat in office was not considerably stable. To cement his rule, Nerva chose the popular Trajan as his adopted son in the summer of 97. Trajan was highly respected and succeeded to power without issue.
The Forum of Trajan was the last in a series of grand imperial constructions that were intended to complement the fairly limited space of the Roman Forum. Domitian specifically had taken a personal interest in the architecture of Rome and wanted to add to the existing imperial constructions, so he began the construction of a vast Forum, including clearing out markets that citizens had previously used in the area. During Nerva’s short rein of 96 to 98 AD, he did not permit the resumption of Domitian’s forum because he was otherwise occupied with foreign affairs. The neglect of the construction of the Forums continued as Trajan first assumed office, as Domitian’s costly constructions had consumed the imperial treasury.
Construction of the forum did not continue until the Dacian wars, which provided Trajan with the funds to complete the Forum and its lavish buildings. The construction of the Forum began in 106 AD, and most of the buildings were complete by 112 AD. The Column of Trajan was dedicated in 113 AD, and upon Trajan’s death in 117 AD he was cremated and buried inside it. In the next 11 years Hadrian had completed a temple to Trajan, now defied, which was completed in 128 AD. Though not constructed by Trajan, the temple likely was planned in advance and constructed in the Forum itself.
II: PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION
The forum was designed as “a rectangular, axially symmetrical, and frontally orientated plaza that was framed by the Basilica Ulpia and the adjacent East and West colonnades and separated from the rest of the city by high fire walls.” (Packer 174) The Basilica Ulpia, divided the piazza from the Column of Trajan, two opposite Greek and Latin libraries and, later, the Temple of Trajan were all hidden by the law court. Curving around the eastern hemicycle of the forum were Trajan’s markets, a complex of shops and offices for Roman citizen use.
The Forum of Trajan was influenced by the large scale temples of Egypt and Mesopotamia as well as markets and shrines of the Hellenistic east. The forum also incorporated some local architecture; the Theatre of Pompey and the Forum of Augustus himself, which really influenced much of the plan and the “cool classicizing style of the architectural elements.”(Packer 174) “Apollodorus’s plan for the Forum of Trajan was an intelligent blend of oriental, Greek, Italic and Roman elements that visually expressed Rome’s unique position as the capital of the Mediterranean World.”(Packer 174)
The Markets of Trajan were fairly innovative in that they were the first to incorporate an indoor shopping experience. All markets previous had been a series of outdoor shops.
The Markets were truly revolutionary in that they did not utilize one supporting column but instead were able to successfully disperse the weight through a series of arches. The markets also show extensive planning in “the relationships between the streets and shops, the functional locations of the stair systems and ramps, and the pains taken to bring adequate lighting and ventilation to nearly every roofed space.” (Packer 25) The markets were roofed by a concrete vault raised on piers, serving the dual purpose of providing cover and also to allow in air and light.
The Forum of Trajan, again, borrowed heavily from other sources and this is evident even in the equestrian statue of Trajan in the center of the forum. This statue heavily imitated the equestrian statue of Caesar in the Roman Forum. Trajan’s column was innovative in its design of the rotating depiction of the Dacian wars, which was depicted, arguably, to great effect. Although it was common to engage the viewer, and force one to focus on a particular tomb, none arguably, was able to do so with quite as much success as Apollodorus in the Column of Trajan.
III: FUNCTION
The Markets of Trajan were again created as replacements to former markets, destroyed by Domitian to make way for the Forum. The shops inside the markets varied in size, though most were rather small, the customer would have actually approached the door from outside and then have been served. The rooms at the level of the Forum would have been occupied by cashiers of the imperial treasury, while shops at higher levels would have been given to private venders.
The Column of Trajan was designed to attract attention and keep the focus of the viewer, for only “disinterest or neglect means a true ‘death’.” (Davies 56) Many believe that the design was not successful because of the awkward viewing angle as well as the fact that because of the location of the Basilica Ulpia and the surrounding libraries, the viewer would not have a sufficient amount of space to back away from the column so to view the various scenes depicted. However, according to Davies’ article, the Column of Trajan was successful in its task of maintaining reader focus because circumventing the column was fairly ritualistic and insured that attention was maintained.
The Forum itself was decorated extremely lavishly with marble from all over the world. The extensive flashy use of different colored marbles emphasized the imperial power able to organize extensive human and monetary resources that was able to provide Rome with such expensive foreign material. “Although composed of simple geometric elements, the plan of the forum must have seemed enormously complex to the ancient visitor.” (Packer 37)
The Forum constantly revealed itself to the visitor; “a series of unfolding surprises, with each new perspective revealing something new.” (Davies 57) The Basilica Ulpia hid much of the Column of Trajan, the libraries and the temple from view, the Column of Trajan was “only fully visible from the north terrace of the Basilica Ulpia of the Steps of the temple.” (Packer 175) “Consequently, these architectural “secrets” transformed a casual walk through the forum into a series of progressive visual revelations...” (Packer 176)
IV: CONCERNS/GOALS OF PATRON
The Forum was a complex structure, chosen to be an optimum method of political propaganda because it would continue to be an essential part of everyday life for many Romans utilizing the libraries, law office or, usually, the markets. The complex was designed chiefly to glorify the new Roman Empire and his military victories in Dacia. The citizens of Rome required the explanation of necessity and benefit of the Dacian wars, as wars are generally costly and often fruitless.
Trajan’s primary operative was to remain in power, and he had
learned from past Emperors such as Domitian how fickle public opinion could be. Trajan and Apollodorus apparently consequently conceived of the Forum of Trajan as the triumphant climax in the series of imperial propaganda that were designed to maximize public opinion by showing a understanding and concern of a Roman citizen’s needs.
The Forum and Markets were created for the people, to show off an aggressive grandeur, which was successfully gained from the Dacian wars. The Forum of Trajan was designed to show off the competence, strength and superiority of Rome to its citizens and visitors. This is entirely evident in the monument at the center of the Forum. This depicts the figure of Trajan mounted on an impressive steed, with the symbols of war and victory held high. The richness and exoticness of the materials chosen to use also ensured a similar effect. “Expensive imported marbles and standards and statues of gilded bronze that crowned the surrounding buildings were the unmistakable signs of an overwhelming imperial prosperity and achievement.” (Packer 187)
The Column itself is the most clearly attempting
to convey a message. The Column is an obvious tribute to Trajan’s wars, with the bottom half devoted to the first Dacian war, and the top half devoted to the second Dacian war. The column is designed with very little actual battle scenes in an attempt to downplay the actual atrocities and realities of war. Instead the column depicts more peaceful scenes, always showing Roman soldiers in complete control. The Roman soldiers depicted struggle almost exclusively in the direction of the spiral itself, this allows the viewer to add his or her own strength when viewing and essentially is simply another technique in which to downplay the reality of war.
Roman society was fairly poor at the beginning of Trajan’s rule, largely due to Domitian’s lavish building. In many ways Trajan’s conquests of Dacia were viewed as costly rather than valuable by the common people because of the large cost of war in general. Thus Trajan was required to show what money was gained from these conquests, and he did this not only in the excessive grandeur but also in placing “From Spoils” on many of the columns in the Forum itself to further cement this idea.
V: CONCLUTION
As the Forum of Trajan borrowed heavily from other monuments it does not appear to be considered extremely influential. However, the Markets of Trajan were extremely influential and revolutionary in form, and essentially were the birth of the shopping mall experience.
The Column of Trajan continues to fascinate us to this day because of the stunning artwork portrayed. The artwork continues to astound and inform audiences to this day. Historians look to the intricate artwork for clues on how wars were fought, what kind of weaponry was used as well as many other historical clues. A perfect example of the influence of the Column of Trajan is the Column of Marcus Aurelius, now standing in the Piazza Colonna. This Column borrows heavily from Trajan’s Column, utilizing the circumventing imagery effectively. The Column is so similar in fact, it is often confused with Trajan’s.
VI: WHAT WAS THE MOST INTERESTING OR SUPRISING?
The most fascinating find during my research was the through extent that the propaganda infiltrated every aspect of the construction of the Forum and Column of Trajan. Knowing how many specific instances could be explained in such minute detail was eye opening for me and really made me realize how many other Roman monuments were just as carefully constructed. This knowledge has made me rethink the way in which I approach any monument constructed by the governing body in power.
Another fascinating bit of information was the sheer detail that one could see and learn by studying the Column of Trajan. One could learn a great deal of historically significant and fascinating information simply by thoroughly reading into the Column’s artwork. The information that fascinated me the most involved the fact that all of this information – the way in which the statues were poised as well as the hand gestures, would convey their meaning to the Roman citizen clearly with little effort. An uneducated Roman citizen would be much better positioned to read the artwork of the Forum of Trajan than some of the most learned historians today. This realization of what really is meant by 2000 years of history, and how much can change in culture and our understanding of it is the most profound ‘take-away’ of this project and presentation.
VII: BIBLIOGRAPHY
Beard, Mary, and John Henderson. Classical Art : From Greece to Rome. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005.
Davies, Penelope J.E. The Politics of Perpetuation:Trajan's Column and the Art of Commemoration. American Journal of Archaeology, v. 101, 1997.
Hedrick, Charles W. History and Silence : Purge and Rehabilitation of Memory in Late Antiquity. Texas: University of Texas P, 2000.
Heiken, Grant, Renato Funiciello, and Donatella De Rita. The Seven Hills of Rome : a Geological Tour of the Eternal City. Princeton: Princeton UP, 2005.
Macdonald, William. The Architecture of the Roman Empire. 2nd ed. Bingham, NY: Yale UP, 1982. 75-83.
Packer, James E. The Forum of Trajan in Rome. 1st ed. London, England: University of California P, 2001.
Honors in Rome – Winter 2007
Art History Final Paper: Forum, Markets and Column of Trajan
I: INTRODUCTIONMarcus Ulpius Nerva Traianus, was born September 18th, 53 AD in the city of Italica. Commonly referred to as Trajan, the Roman Empire achieved its greatest historical extent under his rule. Trajan was the son of a prominent Italian senator and general, Marcus Ulpius Traianus. Trajan served in the Roman army and Syrian army when his father was governor of that province. Trajan quickly rose through the ranks, becoming nominated as Consul in 91 AD with Domitian was emperor at the time.
It was at this point that Trajan brought Apollodorus of Damascus to Rome. Apollodorus was a Greek architect, engineer and sculptor who designed Trajan’s forum and Column as well as being widely acknowledged as the main architect of the Pantheon.
Trajan took a significant part in Domitian’s wars along the Rhine River, as well as others under Nerva’s short rule. When Nerva became emperor, Trajan was appointed as governor of upper Germany. Nerva was the first emperor to select his successor by potential rather than paternal relation. Nerva was also considered to be the first of the “five good emperors of the Roman Empire”, a series of five emperors all chosen by adoption and known for less tyrannical and oppressive policies. Nerva became emperor after the murder of Domitian, and his seat in office was not considerably stable. To cement his rule, Nerva chose the popular Trajan as his adopted son in the summer of 97. Trajan was highly respected and succeeded to power without issue.
The Forum of Trajan was the last in a series of grand imperial constructions that were intended to complement the fairly limited space of the Roman Forum. Domitian specifically had taken a personal interest in the architecture of Rome and wanted to add to the existing imperial constructions, so he began the construction of a vast Forum, including clearing out markets that citizens had previously used in the area. During Nerva’s short rein of 96 to 98 AD, he did not permit the resumption of Domitian’s forum because he was otherwise occupied with foreign affairs. The neglect of the construction of the Forums continued as Trajan first assumed office, as Domitian’s costly constructions had consumed the imperial treasury.
Construction of the forum did not continue until the Dacian wars, which provided Trajan with the funds to complete the Forum and its lavish buildings. The construction of the Forum began in 106 AD, and most of the buildings were complete by 112 AD. The Column of Trajan was dedicated in 113 AD, and upon Trajan’s death in 117 AD he was cremated and buried inside it. In the next 11 years Hadrian had completed a temple to Trajan, now defied, which was completed in 128 AD. Though not constructed by Trajan, the temple likely was planned in advance and constructed in the Forum itself.
II: PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION
The forum was designed as “a rectangular, axially symmetrical, and frontally orientated plaza that was framed by the Basilica Ulpia and the adjacent East and West colonnades and separated from the rest of the city by high fire walls.” (Packer 174) The Basilica Ulpia, divided the piazza from the Column of Trajan, two opposite Greek and Latin libraries and, later, the Temple of Trajan were all hidden by the law court. Curving around the eastern hemicycle of the forum were Trajan’s markets, a complex of shops and offices for Roman citizen use.
The Forum of Trajan was influenced by the large scale temples of Egypt and Mesopotamia as well as markets and shrines of the Hellenistic east. The forum also incorporated some local architecture; the Theatre of Pompey and the Forum of Augustus himself, which really influenced much of the plan and the “cool classicizing style of the architectural elements.”(Packer 174) “Apollodorus’s plan for the Forum of Trajan was an intelligent blend of oriental, Greek, Italic and Roman elements that visually expressed Rome’s unique position as the capital of the Mediterranean World.”(Packer 174)
The Markets of Trajan were fairly innovative in that they were the first to incorporate an indoor shopping experience. All markets previous had been a series of outdoor shops.
The Markets were truly revolutionary in that they did not utilize one supporting column but instead were able to successfully disperse the weight through a series of arches. The markets also show extensive planning in “the relationships between the streets and shops, the functional locations of the stair systems and ramps, and the pains taken to bring adequate lighting and ventilation to nearly every roofed space.” (Packer 25) The markets were roofed by a concrete vault raised on piers, serving the dual purpose of providing cover and also to allow in air and light.
The Forum of Trajan, again, borrowed heavily from other sources and this is evident even in the equestrian statue of Trajan in the center of the forum. This statue heavily imitated the equestrian statue of Caesar in the Roman Forum. Trajan’s column was innovative in its design of the rotating depiction of the Dacian wars, which was depicted, arguably, to great effect. Although it was common to engage the viewer, and force one to focus on a particular tomb, none arguably, was able to do so with quite as much success as Apollodorus in the Column of Trajan.
III: FUNCTION
The Markets of Trajan were again created as replacements to former markets, destroyed by Domitian to make way for the Forum. The shops inside the markets varied in size, though most were rather small, the customer would have actually approached the door from outside and then have been served. The rooms at the level of the Forum would have been occupied by cashiers of the imperial treasury, while shops at higher levels would have been given to private venders.The Column of Trajan was designed to attract attention and keep the focus of the viewer, for only “disinterest or neglect means a true ‘death’.” (Davies 56) Many believe that the design was not successful because of the awkward viewing angle as well as the fact that because of the location of the Basilica Ulpia and the surrounding libraries, the viewer would not have a sufficient amount of space to back away from the column so to view the various scenes depicted. However, according to Davies’ article, the Column of Trajan was successful in its task of maintaining reader focus because circumventing the column was fairly ritualistic and insured that attention was maintained.
The Forum itself was decorated extremely lavishly with marble from all over the world. The extensive flashy use of different colored marbles emphasized the imperial power able to organize extensive human and monetary resources that was able to provide Rome with such expensive foreign material. “Although composed of simple geometric elements, the plan of the forum must have seemed enormously complex to the ancient visitor.” (Packer 37)
The Forum constantly revealed itself to the visitor; “a series of unfolding surprises, with each new perspective revealing something new.” (Davies 57) The Basilica Ulpia hid much of the Column of Trajan, the libraries and the temple from view, the Column of Trajan was “only fully visible from the north terrace of the Basilica Ulpia of the Steps of the temple.” (Packer 175) “Consequently, these architectural “secrets” transformed a casual walk through the forum into a series of progressive visual revelations...” (Packer 176)
IV: CONCERNS/GOALS OF PATRON
The Forum was a complex structure, chosen to be an optimum method of political propaganda because it would continue to be an essential part of everyday life for many Romans utilizing the libraries, law office or, usually, the markets. The complex was designed chiefly to glorify the new Roman Empire and his military victories in Dacia. The citizens of Rome required the explanation of necessity and benefit of the Dacian wars, as wars are generally costly and often fruitless.
Trajan’s primary operative was to remain in power, and he had
learned from past Emperors such as Domitian how fickle public opinion could be. Trajan and Apollodorus apparently consequently conceived of the Forum of Trajan as the triumphant climax in the series of imperial propaganda that were designed to maximize public opinion by showing a understanding and concern of a Roman citizen’s needs.The Forum and Markets were created for the people, to show off an aggressive grandeur, which was successfully gained from the Dacian wars. The Forum of Trajan was designed to show off the competence, strength and superiority of Rome to its citizens and visitors. This is entirely evident in the monument at the center of the Forum. This depicts the figure of Trajan mounted on an impressive steed, with the symbols of war and victory held high. The richness and exoticness of the materials chosen to use also ensured a similar effect. “Expensive imported marbles and standards and statues of gilded bronze that crowned the surrounding buildings were the unmistakable signs of an overwhelming imperial prosperity and achievement.” (Packer 187)
The Column itself is the most clearly attempting
to convey a message. The Column is an obvious tribute to Trajan’s wars, with the bottom half devoted to the first Dacian war, and the top half devoted to the second Dacian war. The column is designed with very little actual battle scenes in an attempt to downplay the actual atrocities and realities of war. Instead the column depicts more peaceful scenes, always showing Roman soldiers in complete control. The Roman soldiers depicted struggle almost exclusively in the direction of the spiral itself, this allows the viewer to add his or her own strength when viewing and essentially is simply another technique in which to downplay the reality of war.Roman society was fairly poor at the beginning of Trajan’s rule, largely due to Domitian’s lavish building. In many ways Trajan’s conquests of Dacia were viewed as costly rather than valuable by the common people because of the large cost of war in general. Thus Trajan was required to show what money was gained from these conquests, and he did this not only in the excessive grandeur but also in placing “From Spoils” on many of the columns in the Forum itself to further cement this idea.
V: CONCLUTION
As the Forum of Trajan borrowed heavily from other monuments it does not appear to be considered extremely influential. However, the Markets of Trajan were extremely influential and revolutionary in form, and essentially were the birth of the shopping mall experience.
The Column of Trajan continues to fascinate us to this day because of the stunning artwork portrayed. The artwork continues to astound and inform audiences to this day. Historians look to the intricate artwork for clues on how wars were fought, what kind of weaponry was used as well as many other historical clues. A perfect example of the influence of the Column of Trajan is the Column of Marcus Aurelius, now standing in the Piazza Colonna. This Column borrows heavily from Trajan’s Column, utilizing the circumventing imagery effectively. The Column is so similar in fact, it is often confused with Trajan’s.
VI: WHAT WAS THE MOST INTERESTING OR SUPRISING?
The most fascinating find during my research was the through extent that the propaganda infiltrated every aspect of the construction of the Forum and Column of Trajan. Knowing how many specific instances could be explained in such minute detail was eye opening for me and really made me realize how many other Roman monuments were just as carefully constructed. This knowledge has made me rethink the way in which I approach any monument constructed by the governing body in power.
Another fascinating bit of information was the sheer detail that one could see and learn by studying the Column of Trajan. One could learn a great deal of historically significant and fascinating information simply by thoroughly reading into the Column’s artwork. The information that fascinated me the most involved the fact that all of this information – the way in which the statues were poised as well as the hand gestures, would convey their meaning to the Roman citizen clearly with little effort. An uneducated Roman citizen would be much better positioned to read the artwork of the Forum of Trajan than some of the most learned historians today. This realization of what really is meant by 2000 years of history, and how much can change in culture and our understanding of it is the most profound ‘take-away’ of this project and presentation.
VII: BIBLIOGRAPHY
Beard, Mary, and John Henderson. Classical Art : From Greece to Rome. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005.
Davies, Penelope J.E. The Politics of Perpetuation:Trajan's Column and the Art of Commemoration. American Journal of Archaeology, v. 101, 1997.
Hedrick, Charles W. History and Silence : Purge and Rehabilitation of Memory in Late Antiquity. Texas: University of Texas P, 2000.
Heiken, Grant, Renato Funiciello, and Donatella De Rita. The Seven Hills of Rome : a Geological Tour of the Eternal City. Princeton: Princeton UP, 2005.
Macdonald, William. The Architecture of the Roman Empire. 2nd ed. Bingham, NY: Yale UP, 1982. 75-83.
Packer, James E. The Forum of Trajan in Rome. 1st ed. London, England: University of California P, 2001.
Damon pulled into the driveway of his mother’s house, just like he did everyday yet today something was different. There was a fancy sports car, a bright Orange Lotus Elise in the garage. A fast car. In Damon’s spot. Damon parked his 2001 Honda Civic Si behind this new monstrosity, careful to bump it just a little. Suddenly loud blaring honking and flashing sounded through the quiet neighborhood. A 20 year old male barreled out of the house, looking stricken.
“Sorry bro, my bag bumped it.” Damon said, earnestly.
“What do you think?” Stephan’s face was lit with a certain innocence, a certain ignorance that aggravated Damon to no end.
“Can you drive it?” Damon wondered whether Stephan knew that this car could do 0-60 in 3.33 seconds. He wondered whether he knew that this was the car Consumer Reports had described as “the hybrid alien insect from the planet Sextron”. Due to the solid Aluminum frame if Stephan a speed bump improperly could damage the Chassis enough to render it totaled.
Stephan chucked knowingly, stupidly. “Not really” he answered.
Damon could only swallow hard and nod.
“Well let’s take it out for a ride. Let’s see what you’ve got.” Damon said this aggressively, knowing Stephan would back down. Knowing Stephan wouldn’t dare.
“Sure, later tonight after mum goes to bed.”
Damon’s Civic revved, in preparation. It was excited to be pushed to the limits, to be shown off. The powerful sound of a supped-up engine seared through the night, getting Damon’s adrenaline pumping. Stephan pulled up beside him, the moonlight shining off the perfect paint job.
There was no one to count down, no one to say ‘go’. It was not that official. So Stephan and Damon counted together.
“1-2-3 GO!” Damon’s Civic sped off through the night, the air thick with spent gas. Stephan, clumsy with a stick, was slower to start, but the perfect balance of the Elise took the turns easily: he quickly caught up to Damon. Damon noticed the approaching orange blur and slammed his gas pedal into the floor of his car. He was clearing the double digits now, yet the orange car sped on. The nose of the Elise was passing into view in Damon’s driver’s-side window, then all of a sudden it overtook him. It overtook his Civic. He was in 5th gear, the pedal to the floor.
Suddenly a wave of anger overtook Damon. He built this car. It was a part of him. It was him. Stephan could have anything in this world. Everything was handed to him. Damon wasn’t a mathematician, wasn’t good at computers, at books, at anything but cars. And Stephan was taking that glory from Damon. Damon couldn’t see anything but the orange car in front of him, mocking him.
A sharp corner was quickly approaching. Stephan slowed down to brace for the turn. Damon drew level with him. They blew through the turn together, nose to nose. Damon noticed a small bump ahead. Still level with Stephan he drifted slightly to the left, knowing Stephan wouldn’t notice. Stephan corrected by going left slightly. A red gleam in his eye, Damon aimed perfectly, and Stephan hit the speed bump.
Suddenly Stephan wasn’t anywhere. For a fraction of a second Damon was joyful: Stephan had been slowed down; had been brought to his knees; had been shamed. Now Stephan would know who was the real driver. But Stephan was in the air. The car that was as light as air, was now spinning above Damon. It seemed like slow motion in Damon’s rear view mirror. This wasn’t real. It was a movie. Just like ‘Fast and the Furious’. The car will be totaled, but Stephan will get out, will get up. Will be alive.
The car hit the ground with a screeching thud. It slid 20 feet on the pavement, the crumpled heap of the once beautiful sports car crying in pain as it went. It didn’t burst into flame – this wasn’t the movies – this was real life. Damon smelled burned rubber, but it wasn’t coming from the Elise. His car was stopped, but he couldn’t remember pressing the breaks. A cell phone was already out, but he couldn’t remember putting his hand in his pocket. He dialed 9-1-1, though in his heart he knew it was in vain. Slowly Damon pulled himself out of his Civic, and began to walk towards the crumpled wreckage of what had been his younger brother.
WRITING JOURNAL
I chose anecdotes to reflect the overall moral of the story. It was difficult to settle on specific ones to use, and they changed greatly as the story progressed. The resolution of the piece is pretty negative, and not that resolved. The moral is essentially you don’t know what you have until its gone, or cherish what you have, or “don’t be a cocky asshole.” I think its successful in that it surprises the reader, but there are specific clues as to Damon’s attitude throughout the story, with him purposely bumping Stephan’s car in the beginning, and also thinking about if Stephan knew that his car was so easily totaled. I think most people will be just expecting some classic story of Damon persevering or something. I did not return to Machiavelli’s fable as a point of reference. Although I liked it, it wasn’t something that particularly inspired me. The most challenging part of the assignment was outlining how to fulfill the standard fable form, when I didn’t really understand it. I do feel better in how to construct my next story but not because of the rigorous rules, instead its because of the fact that I had to figure out a lot of logistical issues involved in writing a story that I didn’t even know I didn’t understand previously.
“Sorry bro, my bag bumped it.” Damon said, earnestly.
“What do you think?” Stephan’s face was lit with a certain innocence, a certain ignorance that aggravated Damon to no end.
“Can you drive it?” Damon wondered whether Stephan knew that this car could do 0-60 in 3.33 seconds. He wondered whether he knew that this was the car Consumer Reports had described as “the hybrid alien insect from the planet Sextron”. Due to the solid Aluminum frame if Stephan a speed bump improperly could damage the Chassis enough to render it totaled.
Stephan chucked knowingly, stupidly. “Not really” he answered.
Damon could only swallow hard and nod.
“Well let’s take it out for a ride. Let’s see what you’ve got.” Damon said this aggressively, knowing Stephan would back down. Knowing Stephan wouldn’t dare.
“Sure, later tonight after mum goes to bed.”
Damon’s Civic revved, in preparation. It was excited to be pushed to the limits, to be shown off. The powerful sound of a supped-up engine seared through the night, getting Damon’s adrenaline pumping. Stephan pulled up beside him, the moonlight shining off the perfect paint job.
There was no one to count down, no one to say ‘go’. It was not that official. So Stephan and Damon counted together.
“1-2-3 GO!” Damon’s Civic sped off through the night, the air thick with spent gas. Stephan, clumsy with a stick, was slower to start, but the perfect balance of the Elise took the turns easily: he quickly caught up to Damon. Damon noticed the approaching orange blur and slammed his gas pedal into the floor of his car. He was clearing the double digits now, yet the orange car sped on. The nose of the Elise was passing into view in Damon’s driver’s-side window, then all of a sudden it overtook him. It overtook his Civic. He was in 5th gear, the pedal to the floor.
Suddenly a wave of anger overtook Damon. He built this car. It was a part of him. It was him. Stephan could have anything in this world. Everything was handed to him. Damon wasn’t a mathematician, wasn’t good at computers, at books, at anything but cars. And Stephan was taking that glory from Damon. Damon couldn’t see anything but the orange car in front of him, mocking him.
A sharp corner was quickly approaching. Stephan slowed down to brace for the turn. Damon drew level with him. They blew through the turn together, nose to nose. Damon noticed a small bump ahead. Still level with Stephan he drifted slightly to the left, knowing Stephan wouldn’t notice. Stephan corrected by going left slightly. A red gleam in his eye, Damon aimed perfectly, and Stephan hit the speed bump.
Suddenly Stephan wasn’t anywhere. For a fraction of a second Damon was joyful: Stephan had been slowed down; had been brought to his knees; had been shamed. Now Stephan would know who was the real driver. But Stephan was in the air. The car that was as light as air, was now spinning above Damon. It seemed like slow motion in Damon’s rear view mirror. This wasn’t real. It was a movie. Just like ‘Fast and the Furious’. The car will be totaled, but Stephan will get out, will get up. Will be alive.
The car hit the ground with a screeching thud. It slid 20 feet on the pavement, the crumpled heap of the once beautiful sports car crying in pain as it went. It didn’t burst into flame – this wasn’t the movies – this was real life. Damon smelled burned rubber, but it wasn’t coming from the Elise. His car was stopped, but he couldn’t remember pressing the breaks. A cell phone was already out, but he couldn’t remember putting his hand in his pocket. He dialed 9-1-1, though in his heart he knew it was in vain. Slowly Damon pulled himself out of his Civic, and began to walk towards the crumpled wreckage of what had been his younger brother.
WRITING JOURNAL
I chose anecdotes to reflect the overall moral of the story. It was difficult to settle on specific ones to use, and they changed greatly as the story progressed. The resolution of the piece is pretty negative, and not that resolved. The moral is essentially you don’t know what you have until its gone, or cherish what you have, or “don’t be a cocky asshole.” I think its successful in that it surprises the reader, but there are specific clues as to Damon’s attitude throughout the story, with him purposely bumping Stephan’s car in the beginning, and also thinking about if Stephan knew that his car was so easily totaled. I think most people will be just expecting some classic story of Damon persevering or something. I did not return to Machiavelli’s fable as a point of reference. Although I liked it, it wasn’t something that particularly inspired me. The most challenging part of the assignment was outlining how to fulfill the standard fable form, when I didn’t really understand it. I do feel better in how to construct my next story but not because of the rigorous rules, instead its because of the fact that I had to figure out a lot of logistical issues involved in writing a story that I didn’t even know I didn’t understand previously.
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Reading Journal - Week 3
I have no idea what is meant by the “three context elements”, or if this story includes them. It does appear to set some context when Pluto is deciding what to do about mortal men and their problems with their wives as well as when Belfagor is decided as the demon who must go down to earth. The turning point would be when Belfagor becomes in debt, and has to run for it. The actions of the main character in response would be Rodergio hiding from his pursuers, being helped by Gianmatteo, possessing the first woman, possessing the second women, possessing the third, and being driven out by the thought of his wife. The moral is explicit and is seen in the second to last sentence, as well as the underlying throughout the story. The reversal is seen when Rodergio is scared away and decides to go back to hell rather than face his wife. The resolution could be seen in the last sentence of the story, when Gianmatteo returned home a happy man
I have no idea what is meant by the “three context elements”, or if this story includes them. It does appear to set some context when Pluto is deciding what to do about mortal men and their problems with their wives as well as when Belfagor is decided as the demon who must go down to earth. The turning point would be when Belfagor becomes in debt, and has to run for it. The actions of the main character in response would be Rodergio hiding from his pursuers, being helped by Gianmatteo, possessing the first woman, possessing the second women, possessing the third, and being driven out by the thought of his wife. The moral is explicit and is seen in the second to last sentence, as well as the underlying throughout the story. The reversal is seen when Rodergio is scared away and decides to go back to hell rather than face his wife. The resolution could be seen in the last sentence of the story, when Gianmatteo returned home a happy man
Myth
It was not very long ago and not so far away that fashion was born. It all started with Ares, the most active player of his time. Ares could pry open even the most chaste thighs. He was admired by his mortal as well as even his immortal friends. Dionysus, after a long drunken night barhopping admitted, “Duuuuuddeee, you certainly are a ladies man. Even my madskillz at wine could not challenge your skillz in women. I admit that you are the master womanizer.”
Ares’ father Zeus would brag about his son’s conquests at business meetings, asking Poseidon how many women Cyclopes had hooked up with in the last month. These discussions really bothered Hera, Zeus’s ball and chains. Hera was of the belief that Ares should settle down and give her “some damn grandkids already.” After centuries of nagging, Hera finally convinced Ares to choose a wife, citing that just like his ol’ pop, marriage didn’t necessarily need to stop him from sharing other beds.
Ares, as the personification of the fighting spirit and all that is manly of course required a wife of a similar caliber. This meant he wanted the hottest bitch in the universe as his bride. As gossip spreads like wildfire on Mt. Olympus soon every woman, god or mortal had learned of Ares and his new ultimate objective. Women were chiming to become his one and only, constantly calling him, sending love letters or flowers, and screaming to the heavens.
Ares quickly realized that there had to be some sensible way in which to deal with this daunting task. So, as gods do, he decided to organize a competition between the most attractive women in all the land.
Thus word spread and women began to schedule hair and makeup appointments for the date. Ares opened the competition to women of mortal and immortal decent, citing that he didn’t care where they came from or who they were as long as they were hot.
On the days leading up to the competition, ladies were brought from every corner of the earth, the one deemed most attractive out of every major country or province. The competition was designed so that it would emphasize the women’s beauty as much as possible; all women wore the same classic white toga, so as not to distract from the judging.
The competition day arrived and the opposition was stiff, with ladies threatening and attempting to sabotage each other at every turn. Ares himself was the only judge, and he was duly impressed by the hotness of the ladies present. However, it quickly became evident that mortal women were losing badly to the immortal women in the party. Although there were extremely attractive mortal women, none could compete with the unreal timeless beauty and grace of immortal goddesses. At last there were only three women left, all goddesses; Aphrodite, Artemis and Athena.
Each goddesses was beautiful in her own way to Ares. Aphrodite, as goddess of love and beauty, could not be rivaled in her classic sexual charm and sultry looks, clearly very experienced. Artemis, goddess of wildlife and the hunt, had an exotic and wild appeal, yet innocent at the same time. Athena, on the other hand, as goddess of wisdom and victory at war spoke to Ares’ own heart with a strong stoic and mysterious appeal.
Each goddess was undeniably beautiful, and it was impossible for Ares to choose one clear winner out of the three, so the competition was postponed. The competition was said to resume in one weeks time, but with new rules. A series of contests were organized, one each with a different shape and type of tunic. The first contest required a casual tunic, the second a dressier more business like dress, and the last essentially something slutty. But the real difference here was the fact that the ladies were able to design their tunics themselves.
A week passed, and the new competition drew even larger crowds than the last. All three contests went well, with all ladies looking hot. This time, at the end of the last contest, Ares had decided on a clear winner: Aphrodite. He announced it to the crowd saying, “Although all three women are attractive, Aphrodite’s last outfit was so slutty that it made her look especially hot.”
From that point on women everywhere learnt the importance of their choice of clothing in securing a mate and thus the first stirrings of style were born on Mt Olympus.
Journal Questions
I chose specific characters based on how they would fit with my overall idea and theme that I wanted to portray. I kind of developed my story around those specific characters when thinking it up, based on what I’d remembered from reading the myths as well as studying Greek mythology in high school. I didn’t really employ metaphors in my story at all, so I assume had I, I would have found it challenging. My point of view made descriptions easier, and the story telling easier, but I believe a reader would be less ready to relate to the story because of it, unfortunately. I chose to include dialog very seldom in this piece because it was difficult to do without sounding awkward, but when I did I felt like it cemented what I was trying to convey and gave it a more modern flair then the “narrator” voice could sufficiently fulfill. Every single part of this piece was challenging and difficult to write, from how much description to place into it, to how to convincingly use dialog, to how to make it sound convincingly modern. It was extremely difficult for me to get ideas, to set the tone, to attempt to make it entertaining yet not too inappropriate. Overall, I like the pretense of this piece and believe that in the hands of an actual creative writer it would have flowed better, and been actually successful.
Ares’ father Zeus would brag about his son’s conquests at business meetings, asking Poseidon how many women Cyclopes had hooked up with in the last month. These discussions really bothered Hera, Zeus’s ball and chains. Hera was of the belief that Ares should settle down and give her “some damn grandkids already.” After centuries of nagging, Hera finally convinced Ares to choose a wife, citing that just like his ol’ pop, marriage didn’t necessarily need to stop him from sharing other beds.
Ares, as the personification of the fighting spirit and all that is manly of course required a wife of a similar caliber. This meant he wanted the hottest bitch in the universe as his bride. As gossip spreads like wildfire on Mt. Olympus soon every woman, god or mortal had learned of Ares and his new ultimate objective. Women were chiming to become his one and only, constantly calling him, sending love letters or flowers, and screaming to the heavens.
Ares quickly realized that there had to be some sensible way in which to deal with this daunting task. So, as gods do, he decided to organize a competition between the most attractive women in all the land.
Thus word spread and women began to schedule hair and makeup appointments for the date. Ares opened the competition to women of mortal and immortal decent, citing that he didn’t care where they came from or who they were as long as they were hot.
On the days leading up to the competition, ladies were brought from every corner of the earth, the one deemed most attractive out of every major country or province. The competition was designed so that it would emphasize the women’s beauty as much as possible; all women wore the same classic white toga, so as not to distract from the judging.
The competition day arrived and the opposition was stiff, with ladies threatening and attempting to sabotage each other at every turn. Ares himself was the only judge, and he was duly impressed by the hotness of the ladies present. However, it quickly became evident that mortal women were losing badly to the immortal women in the party. Although there were extremely attractive mortal women, none could compete with the unreal timeless beauty and grace of immortal goddesses. At last there were only three women left, all goddesses; Aphrodite, Artemis and Athena.
Each goddesses was beautiful in her own way to Ares. Aphrodite, as goddess of love and beauty, could not be rivaled in her classic sexual charm and sultry looks, clearly very experienced. Artemis, goddess of wildlife and the hunt, had an exotic and wild appeal, yet innocent at the same time. Athena, on the other hand, as goddess of wisdom and victory at war spoke to Ares’ own heart with a strong stoic and mysterious appeal.
Each goddess was undeniably beautiful, and it was impossible for Ares to choose one clear winner out of the three, so the competition was postponed. The competition was said to resume in one weeks time, but with new rules. A series of contests were organized, one each with a different shape and type of tunic. The first contest required a casual tunic, the second a dressier more business like dress, and the last essentially something slutty. But the real difference here was the fact that the ladies were able to design their tunics themselves.
A week passed, and the new competition drew even larger crowds than the last. All three contests went well, with all ladies looking hot. This time, at the end of the last contest, Ares had decided on a clear winner: Aphrodite. He announced it to the crowd saying, “Although all three women are attractive, Aphrodite’s last outfit was so slutty that it made her look especially hot.”
From that point on women everywhere learnt the importance of their choice of clothing in securing a mate and thus the first stirrings of style were born on Mt Olympus.
Journal Questions
I chose specific characters based on how they would fit with my overall idea and theme that I wanted to portray. I kind of developed my story around those specific characters when thinking it up, based on what I’d remembered from reading the myths as well as studying Greek mythology in high school. I didn’t really employ metaphors in my story at all, so I assume had I, I would have found it challenging. My point of view made descriptions easier, and the story telling easier, but I believe a reader would be less ready to relate to the story because of it, unfortunately. I chose to include dialog very seldom in this piece because it was difficult to do without sounding awkward, but when I did I felt like it cemented what I was trying to convey and gave it a more modern flair then the “narrator” voice could sufficiently fulfill. Every single part of this piece was challenging and difficult to write, from how much description to place into it, to how to convincingly use dialog, to how to make it sound convincingly modern. It was extremely difficult for me to get ideas, to set the tone, to attempt to make it entertaining yet not too inappropriate. Overall, I like the pretense of this piece and believe that in the hands of an actual creative writer it would have flowed better, and been actually successful.
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Journal Entry # 2
The theme of transformation is not nearly as evident in Calvino’s invisible cities as opposed to Metamorphoses. In Calvino, the transformation was not a continuous underlying theme that could be pointed to. A few stories obviously had transformation as a theme, but it wasn’t necessarily true of all stories. However in Metamorphoses, this is a different way of looking at transformation. In Metamorphoses, the transformation is more clearly evident, its an obvious theme. For example, its obvious and clear that Narcissus is turned into a flower, and is clearly transformed in doing it. I guess what I’m trying to articulate is that the theme of transformation in Calvino is only seen by doing a deeper more through reading. Although there are many differences, both texts clearly articulate feelings using clear and descriptive language.
It’s interesting to me that people often interact with the gods on a very informal level in Ovid’s work. It seems rather like a convoluted situation, with the gods creating the humans yet having strange love affairs with them. I am very familiar with Greek myths from high school mythology so I continuously was comparing from what I remembered.
The myths are different in that the Roman myth is more innocent, Persephone is portrayed as a young girl, and the romantic relationship between her and Hades is downplayed.
The theme of transformation is not nearly as evident in Calvino’s invisible cities as opposed to Metamorphoses. In Calvino, the transformation was not a continuous underlying theme that could be pointed to. A few stories obviously had transformation as a theme, but it wasn’t necessarily true of all stories. However in Metamorphoses, this is a different way of looking at transformation. In Metamorphoses, the transformation is more clearly evident, its an obvious theme. For example, its obvious and clear that Narcissus is turned into a flower, and is clearly transformed in doing it. I guess what I’m trying to articulate is that the theme of transformation in Calvino is only seen by doing a deeper more through reading. Although there are many differences, both texts clearly articulate feelings using clear and descriptive language.
It’s interesting to me that people often interact with the gods on a very informal level in Ovid’s work. It seems rather like a convoluted situation, with the gods creating the humans yet having strange love affairs with them. I am very familiar with Greek myths from high school mythology so I continuously was comparing from what I remembered.
The myths are different in that the Roman myth is more innocent, Persephone is portrayed as a young girl, and the romantic relationship between her and Hades is downplayed.
Sunday, January 7, 2007
Assignment: 4 Calvino Cities
Cities really are, in essence, the same
When you eventually reach shore on the small town of Fangora you are immediately thrown off by the large percentage of shrubbery which occupies a large proportion of the land. You feel as if thrown into a different world, stranded in wilderness, a border city between two deserts. You will see a crack open and a different city appear as your ferry docks.
You soon realize you’ve actually entered into a time portal vortex. The cars are 10 years old, the fashions at least as old. The people who inhabit the land clearly are not human beings. These beings may appear human. They may speak in your tongue initially and utilize the same body language but once you attempt to communicate with them you soon realize that is where the similarities end.
As you begin to make your departure, the beings begin to show their strange ways. These people, upon beginning the decent downstairs, will wait, holding their newly opened door in kindness for you. Now, this odd behavior will continue even if one hasn’t set one foot on the first stair. When you travel into town, the people continue this awkward polite kindness. You are not seen as an outsider. The people welcome you into their city and ask how your day has been. The smiling lady at the coffee stand will recommend her personal favorite options, and what locals have been enjoying lately. The bakery on the corner has been family owned for 30 years, with freshly baked goods daily.
You begin to frequent the local stores and the people begin to know you. They refer to you by name. Years later you realize that this city, to you, at one point, is really just like any other.
Being Thankful
After three days of traveling you see bright lights on the horizon and you will realize you’ve reached Joveville. I arrived at night, though I had expected a sunrise. The people were awake, in the dead of night. They had congregated in the center of the city, there was a bright globe sitting on a light pole that was twice the side of any I’d previously encountered. The people looked like they were waiting for something. A mother clothed in a flowery summer dressed clutched her infant daughter tightly, both transfixed by the light in front of them. Speechless. A scrawny dog howled, than laid down in front of the crowd.
I tried to talk to an older gentleman with a cane. He ignored me, eyes on the globe. I asked the flowered lady for directions, the infant followed my mouth as I spoke but there was no other inclination that I had been noticed. I walked away from the crowd, afraid.
Although I was certain the street leading up to the light pole was entirely lit at one point, now I was unsure of which it was since all was dark. There was no distinguishing one from another. No buildings were lit and even the sky has disappeared. The world was eerily quiet all around me. I wandered down some road for sometime in the pitch dark. I followed the sound my feet made on the gravel. Suddenly I came to an empty field where an old man was sitting on a bench. I walked up to him, hopeful for directions.
His eyes were glazed over, he sat with his head tilted up, focusing on nothing. I asked to sit down beside him. He obliged, nodding once. I asked for directions to the nearest city. He told me that I would never find my way out. I was appalled by his negativity. I told him I surely could, that I’d wait for the power to come back on or the night to turn to day. He explained that it never would. That it was a bright summer day, the birds were chirping and the trees were swaying in the wind. I looked out into the deep darkness, and thought longingly of the bright globe atop the light pole.
Atheism
Medina can be reached only on foot. The city is surrounded by steep hills, with no clear way in which an automobile can enter. The city is barren, stricken. The city is entirely made up of a harsh reddish brown tone. Nothing can grow. There is no green. The temperature is unbearable, so the people all mill about in the public bathing chambers, staying cool by way of recycled refrigerated water. The people here never smile, they never laugh. They have forgotten how.
Those that remain alive look dead: their skin is wrinkly and wheathered, leather like. Their eyes are blank and lifeless. The remnants of the dead are scattered about the road, both foliage and human remains.
There is no purpose to life. No one moves, no one eats, no one breathes. No one knows if these people no longer require breath, or simply are apathetic to living entirely: there is no god.
Late at night, if you listen hard enough, you can hear the distant sounds of the city alive again, happy. Children playing in the street, jumping over sprinklers, laughing. Men kissing their wives goodbye before they get in their company car and drive to work. Trees, grass, plants, animals. Every second the unhappy city contains a happy city unaware of its own existence.
Contradiction (Own choice)
You ride horseback for eight nights before you come to Altania. The first thing you’ll notice as you cross the city limits is the ultimate penetrating silence. The sun is shining and warm. The people however are not. If you did see a body I’d only be for a quick second. You wouldn’t even be certain you’d seen anything at all. You’d be hard pressed to find a child within fifty miles of the area.
However, at night, it is a mad house. Individuals everywhere: laughing, merrymaking and enjoying life. The people are loud, rambunctious, and of all colors and social classes. However, they appear to be very excepting of all races. Not a one of them is prejudice or thinks ill of another member of their family. The little fighting that is done is over quickly and is carefully dealt with.
The food is plentiful and individuals relish the hunt. Theirs is a tightly ordered society. The women are given equal rights in their culture. Many hold high positions of power. The individuals are highly religious, in their own way.
The society functions well at night. Clearly, except for the few lone people, the individuals are a nocturnal lot. However, the individuals do not consume food like a normal human, and they cannot procreate easily. They do not create anything, only destroy it. They cannot go out in daylight without suffering intense dermatological pain.
Journal Questions:
The theme that was easiest to use was ‘Atheism’. This is because that theme was very general and I had a lot of ways that I could tie the city into that theme. The more specific themes, I believe, would have been more difficult because that would have meant that I would have had a hard time coming up with a story about a city that was different from what Calvino had already written. It was easiest to write the descriptions with a theme because then I had an idea of what that concept meant to me and where I wanted to go with it. I had a starting point. The most difficult part of the assignment, hands down, was deciding on what I wanted to write about. The actual writing was easy. Calvino’s use language clashed with my own in a lot of situations and the phrases I chose only fit very specific situations unfortunately. I neither tried to avoid sounding like him or really thought about borrowing from his writings. I could imagine him writing a few sentences of what I wrote, however, and I felt like that assured me that I was on the right track. For seems like an invisible city in a lot of ways. It has so much history and so many things going on inside its limits at once that you could take any one topic and go crazy with it. I would probably chose a theme about contrasting cultures were I to write about Rome, because Rome has so many current different cultures as well as so many cultures that influenced its creation and the creation of all of its different monuments.
When you eventually reach shore on the small town of Fangora you are immediately thrown off by the large percentage of shrubbery which occupies a large proportion of the land. You feel as if thrown into a different world, stranded in wilderness, a border city between two deserts. You will see a crack open and a different city appear as your ferry docks.
You soon realize you’ve actually entered into a time portal vortex. The cars are 10 years old, the fashions at least as old. The people who inhabit the land clearly are not human beings. These beings may appear human. They may speak in your tongue initially and utilize the same body language but once you attempt to communicate with them you soon realize that is where the similarities end.
As you begin to make your departure, the beings begin to show their strange ways. These people, upon beginning the decent downstairs, will wait, holding their newly opened door in kindness for you. Now, this odd behavior will continue even if one hasn’t set one foot on the first stair. When you travel into town, the people continue this awkward polite kindness. You are not seen as an outsider. The people welcome you into their city and ask how your day has been. The smiling lady at the coffee stand will recommend her personal favorite options, and what locals have been enjoying lately. The bakery on the corner has been family owned for 30 years, with freshly baked goods daily.
You begin to frequent the local stores and the people begin to know you. They refer to you by name. Years later you realize that this city, to you, at one point, is really just like any other.
Being Thankful
After three days of traveling you see bright lights on the horizon and you will realize you’ve reached Joveville. I arrived at night, though I had expected a sunrise. The people were awake, in the dead of night. They had congregated in the center of the city, there was a bright globe sitting on a light pole that was twice the side of any I’d previously encountered. The people looked like they were waiting for something. A mother clothed in a flowery summer dressed clutched her infant daughter tightly, both transfixed by the light in front of them. Speechless. A scrawny dog howled, than laid down in front of the crowd.
I tried to talk to an older gentleman with a cane. He ignored me, eyes on the globe. I asked the flowered lady for directions, the infant followed my mouth as I spoke but there was no other inclination that I had been noticed. I walked away from the crowd, afraid.
Although I was certain the street leading up to the light pole was entirely lit at one point, now I was unsure of which it was since all was dark. There was no distinguishing one from another. No buildings were lit and even the sky has disappeared. The world was eerily quiet all around me. I wandered down some road for sometime in the pitch dark. I followed the sound my feet made on the gravel. Suddenly I came to an empty field where an old man was sitting on a bench. I walked up to him, hopeful for directions.
His eyes were glazed over, he sat with his head tilted up, focusing on nothing. I asked to sit down beside him. He obliged, nodding once. I asked for directions to the nearest city. He told me that I would never find my way out. I was appalled by his negativity. I told him I surely could, that I’d wait for the power to come back on or the night to turn to day. He explained that it never would. That it was a bright summer day, the birds were chirping and the trees were swaying in the wind. I looked out into the deep darkness, and thought longingly of the bright globe atop the light pole.
Atheism
Medina can be reached only on foot. The city is surrounded by steep hills, with no clear way in which an automobile can enter. The city is barren, stricken. The city is entirely made up of a harsh reddish brown tone. Nothing can grow. There is no green. The temperature is unbearable, so the people all mill about in the public bathing chambers, staying cool by way of recycled refrigerated water. The people here never smile, they never laugh. They have forgotten how.
Those that remain alive look dead: their skin is wrinkly and wheathered, leather like. Their eyes are blank and lifeless. The remnants of the dead are scattered about the road, both foliage and human remains.
There is no purpose to life. No one moves, no one eats, no one breathes. No one knows if these people no longer require breath, or simply are apathetic to living entirely: there is no god.
Late at night, if you listen hard enough, you can hear the distant sounds of the city alive again, happy. Children playing in the street, jumping over sprinklers, laughing. Men kissing their wives goodbye before they get in their company car and drive to work. Trees, grass, plants, animals. Every second the unhappy city contains a happy city unaware of its own existence.
Contradiction (Own choice)
You ride horseback for eight nights before you come to Altania. The first thing you’ll notice as you cross the city limits is the ultimate penetrating silence. The sun is shining and warm. The people however are not. If you did see a body I’d only be for a quick second. You wouldn’t even be certain you’d seen anything at all. You’d be hard pressed to find a child within fifty miles of the area.
However, at night, it is a mad house. Individuals everywhere: laughing, merrymaking and enjoying life. The people are loud, rambunctious, and of all colors and social classes. However, they appear to be very excepting of all races. Not a one of them is prejudice or thinks ill of another member of their family. The little fighting that is done is over quickly and is carefully dealt with.
The food is plentiful and individuals relish the hunt. Theirs is a tightly ordered society. The women are given equal rights in their culture. Many hold high positions of power. The individuals are highly religious, in their own way.
The society functions well at night. Clearly, except for the few lone people, the individuals are a nocturnal lot. However, the individuals do not consume food like a normal human, and they cannot procreate easily. They do not create anything, only destroy it. They cannot go out in daylight without suffering intense dermatological pain.
Journal Questions:
The theme that was easiest to use was ‘Atheism’. This is because that theme was very general and I had a lot of ways that I could tie the city into that theme. The more specific themes, I believe, would have been more difficult because that would have meant that I would have had a hard time coming up with a story about a city that was different from what Calvino had already written. It was easiest to write the descriptions with a theme because then I had an idea of what that concept meant to me and where I wanted to go with it. I had a starting point. The most difficult part of the assignment, hands down, was deciding on what I wanted to write about. The actual writing was easy. Calvino’s use language clashed with my own in a lot of situations and the phrases I chose only fit very specific situations unfortunately. I neither tried to avoid sounding like him or really thought about borrowing from his writings. I could imagine him writing a few sentences of what I wrote, however, and I felt like that assured me that I was on the right track. For seems like an invisible city in a lot of ways. It has so much history and so many things going on inside its limits at once that you could take any one topic and go crazy with it. I would probably chose a theme about contrasting cultures were I to write about Rome, because Rome has so many current different cultures as well as so many cultures that influenced its creation and the creation of all of its different monuments.
Friday, January 5, 2007
Calvino Homework
Assignment 1: Calvino’s Invisible Cities
1) Diomiria
a. “he feels envy toward those who now believe the have once before lived an evening identical to this and who think they were happy, that time”
b. People just going about their daily routine, and others thinking back on it and feeling nostalgic.
2) Isodora
a. “where the foreigner hesitating between two women always encounters a third.”
b. The ideal city but not in time
3) Dorothea
a. “this path is only one of the man that opened before me that morning in Dorothea”
b. Many possibilities
4) Zaira
a. “As this wave from memories flows in, the city soaks it up like a sponge and expands”
b. Contains both past and present memories
5) Anastasia
a. “You believe you are enjoying Anastasia wholly when you are only its slave”
b. The city is your master, not vice versa
6) Tamara
a. “The eye does not see things but images of things that mean other things”
b. There are so many signs that mean other things you leave with out knowing what they mean
7) Zora
a. “The city which cannon be expunged from the mind is like an armature, a honey comb in whose cell each of us can place the things he wants to remember”
b. Cities which are designed to be easily memorable never change and thus fall into a lull and lose their importance
8) Despina
a. “A border city between two deserts”
b. In our eyes, the city becomes what you most desire
9) Zirma
a. “The city is redundant: it repeats itself so that something will stick in the mind”
b. The city only exists in consistency
10) Isaura
a. “A city that moves entirely upward”
b. Everything depends on perspective
11) Maurilia
a. “He must praise the postcard city and prefer it to the present one, though he must be careful to contain his regret at the changes within definite limits”
b. A city, when changed significantly, becomes a different city entirely
12) Fedora
a. “The one that contains what is acceptable as necessary when it is not yet so; the others, what is imagined as possible and, a moment later, it possible no longer.”
b. Possibilities for thinking of what a city would be become something else before it could be completed
13) Zoe
a. “Zoe is the place of indivisible existence”
b. What does it mean for a city to exist?
14) Zenobia
a. “It makes not sense to divide cities into these two species, but rather into another two: those that through the years and the changes continue to give their form to desires, and those in which desires either erase the city or are erased by it”
b. Cities continue to follow tradition though it may no longer continue to be logical
15) Euphemia
a. “on your return from Euphemia, the city where memory is traded at ever solstice and at every equinox”
b. Memories gradually change as you tell the story about them
16) Zobeide
a. “They tell this dream of its foundation: men of various nations had an identical dream”
b. People begin cities because of an ideal dream but it often never becomes reality
17) Hypatia
a. “There is no language without deceit”
b. Cities are often idealized
18) Armilla
a. “Armilla cannot be called deserted”
b. Things are not always what they seem
19) Chloe
a. “If men and women began to live their ephemeral dreams, every phantom would become a person with whom to begin a story of pursuits, pretenses, misunderstandings, clashes, oppressions, and the carousel of fantasies would stop”
b. People don’t act because of the consequences that might be created but because of this they fail to live
20) Valdrada
a. “inhabitants know that each of their actions is, at once, that action and its mirror image, which possesses that special dignity of images, and this awareness prevents them from succumbing for a single moment to chance and forgetfulness”
b. You are always being watched and need to be mindful
21) Olivia
a. “Falsehood is never in words; it is in things”
b. Words describe things accurately, but the things themselves can be misleading
22) Sophronia
a. “it must wait before the caravan returns and a complete life can begin again”
b. The city is only partially whole half of the year
23) Eutropia
a. “they open alternate mouths in identical yawns”
b. Continuous cycle
24) Zemrude
a. “You cannot say that one aspect of the city is truer than the other”
b. Your perspective determines how much you get out of the city
25) Aglaura
a. “The city that they speak of has much of what is needed to exist, whereas the city that exists on its site, exists less’
b. Description doesn’t necessarily follow what the city actually is like, but it is so often changing that the description is the only thing that you can count on
26) Octavia
a. “They know the net will last only so long”
b. Cities have a limited life
27) Ersilia
a. “Spiderwebs of intricate relationships seeking a form”
b. If things become too complex then they can no longer function
28) Baucis
a. “that they love it as it was before they existed and with spyglasses and telescopes aimed downward they never tire of examining it, leaf by leaf, stone by stone, ant by ant, contemplating with fascination their own absence”
b. There could be many reasons for many actions
29) Leandra
a. “But that does not mean they only live in memories”
b. People always believe things could be better
30) Melania
a. “Melina’s population renews itself”
b. Continuous cycle
31) Esmeralda
a. “all these routes, solid and liquid, evident and hidden”
b. There are many more ways than roads, to get around a city
32) Phyllis
a. “Phyllis is a space in which routes are drawn between points suspended in the void”
b. You lose the charm of the city if you live there
33) Pyrrha
a. “the name means this and could mean nothing like this”
b. Defining a city by name creates constraints
34) Adelma
a. “You reach a moment in life when, among the people you have known the dead outnumber the living”
b. When you look to others that you don’t recognize, you see people that you’ve known and so do they – searching for recognition
35) Eudoxia
a. “the other is an approximate reflection, like every human creation”
b. You can see meaning in an entire lack of meaning if you stare hard enough
36) Moriana
a. “it consists only of a face and obverse, like a sheet of paper, with a figure on one side, which can neither be separated nor look at each other”
b. Cities have a pretty pleasant face, and a broken down poor face
37) Clarice
a. “they grabbed everything that could be taken from where it was and put to a different use”
b. Cities become different cities with no connecting
38) Eusapia
a. “in twin cities there is no longer a way of knowing who is alive and who is dead”
b. If everything is the same, there can be no way to see a difference
39) Beersheba
a. “A city which, only when it shits, is not miserly, calculating, greedy”
b. When you are so obsessed with perfection than you become empty
40) Leonia
a. “the more Leonia expels goods, the more it accumulates them”
b. Many are just focused on having new objects rather than sensibly repairing the old which is practical
41) Irene
a. “Irene is a name for a city in the distance, and if you approach, it changes”
b. Your first perception of the city could be entirely different than what the city actually is like and is a entirely different city itself
42) Argia
a. “it has earth instead of air”
b. An imagined city
43) Thekla
a. “”there is the blueprint”, they say”
b. Continuous construction without having an original product leads to nothing
44) Trude
a. “I would have thought I was landing at the same airport from which I had taken off”
b. Cities really are, in essence, the same
45) Olinda
a. “and within the innermost circle they are already blossoming”
b. Cities are constantly changing and renewing themselves
46) Laudomia
a. “for different cities that could have been there and were not, or reasons that tare incomplete contradictory, disappointing”
b. Limited overabundance
47) Perinthia
a. “the order of the gods is reflected exactly in the city of monsters”
b. Atheism
48) Procopia
a. “even the sky has disappeared. I might as well leave the window”
b. Spirits
49) Raissa
a. “every second the unhappy city contains a happy city unaware of its own existence”
b. Being thankful
50) Andria
a. “only city I know where it is best to remain motionless in time”
b. Interconnectedness
51) Cecelia
a. “Cecelia is everywhere”
b. Similarities
52) Marozia
a. “You will see a crack open and a different city appear”
b. Possibilities are everywhere
53) Penthesilea
a. “a soupy city diluted in the plain”
b. Interconnectedness
54) Theodora
a. “the exclusive image of human city that still distinguishes it”
b. By attempting to thwart nature, it comes back stronger and more powerful
55) Bernice
a. “this seed ferments in bitterness, rivalry, resentment”
b. Infinite possibilities
Question Paragraph:
The narrator in Calvino’s work is Marco Polo. Marco Polo was Venetian, which is why Venice is such a significant part of the story. Historically, Marco Polo was known as a notorious traveler, which is why the author chose to use him as the ideal narrator. Marco Polo is ideally suited to narrate this story and is a believable character. Marco Polo decides to change his perspective as narrator several times during his story telling. At points his perspective is first person, at other times it is third person omnipotent. I believe Marco Polo chooses this narration style because at certain points it makes a more powerful statement.
1) Diomiria
a. “he feels envy toward those who now believe the have once before lived an evening identical to this and who think they were happy, that time”
b. People just going about their daily routine, and others thinking back on it and feeling nostalgic.
2) Isodora
a. “where the foreigner hesitating between two women always encounters a third.”
b. The ideal city but not in time
3) Dorothea
a. “this path is only one of the man that opened before me that morning in Dorothea”
b. Many possibilities
4) Zaira
a. “As this wave from memories flows in, the city soaks it up like a sponge and expands”
b. Contains both past and present memories
5) Anastasia
a. “You believe you are enjoying Anastasia wholly when you are only its slave”
b. The city is your master, not vice versa
6) Tamara
a. “The eye does not see things but images of things that mean other things”
b. There are so many signs that mean other things you leave with out knowing what they mean
7) Zora
a. “The city which cannon be expunged from the mind is like an armature, a honey comb in whose cell each of us can place the things he wants to remember”
b. Cities which are designed to be easily memorable never change and thus fall into a lull and lose their importance
8) Despina
a. “A border city between two deserts”
b. In our eyes, the city becomes what you most desire
9) Zirma
a. “The city is redundant: it repeats itself so that something will stick in the mind”
b. The city only exists in consistency
10) Isaura
a. “A city that moves entirely upward”
b. Everything depends on perspective
11) Maurilia
a. “He must praise the postcard city and prefer it to the present one, though he must be careful to contain his regret at the changes within definite limits”
b. A city, when changed significantly, becomes a different city entirely
12) Fedora
a. “The one that contains what is acceptable as necessary when it is not yet so; the others, what is imagined as possible and, a moment later, it possible no longer.”
b. Possibilities for thinking of what a city would be become something else before it could be completed
13) Zoe
a. “Zoe is the place of indivisible existence”
b. What does it mean for a city to exist?
14) Zenobia
a. “It makes not sense to divide cities into these two species, but rather into another two: those that through the years and the changes continue to give their form to desires, and those in which desires either erase the city or are erased by it”
b. Cities continue to follow tradition though it may no longer continue to be logical
15) Euphemia
a. “on your return from Euphemia, the city where memory is traded at ever solstice and at every equinox”
b. Memories gradually change as you tell the story about them
16) Zobeide
a. “They tell this dream of its foundation: men of various nations had an identical dream”
b. People begin cities because of an ideal dream but it often never becomes reality
17) Hypatia
a. “There is no language without deceit”
b. Cities are often idealized
18) Armilla
a. “Armilla cannot be called deserted”
b. Things are not always what they seem
19) Chloe
a. “If men and women began to live their ephemeral dreams, every phantom would become a person with whom to begin a story of pursuits, pretenses, misunderstandings, clashes, oppressions, and the carousel of fantasies would stop”
b. People don’t act because of the consequences that might be created but because of this they fail to live
20) Valdrada
a. “inhabitants know that each of their actions is, at once, that action and its mirror image, which possesses that special dignity of images, and this awareness prevents them from succumbing for a single moment to chance and forgetfulness”
b. You are always being watched and need to be mindful
21) Olivia
a. “Falsehood is never in words; it is in things”
b. Words describe things accurately, but the things themselves can be misleading
22) Sophronia
a. “it must wait before the caravan returns and a complete life can begin again”
b. The city is only partially whole half of the year
23) Eutropia
a. “they open alternate mouths in identical yawns”
b. Continuous cycle
24) Zemrude
a. “You cannot say that one aspect of the city is truer than the other”
b. Your perspective determines how much you get out of the city
25) Aglaura
a. “The city that they speak of has much of what is needed to exist, whereas the city that exists on its site, exists less’
b. Description doesn’t necessarily follow what the city actually is like, but it is so often changing that the description is the only thing that you can count on
26) Octavia
a. “They know the net will last only so long”
b. Cities have a limited life
27) Ersilia
a. “Spiderwebs of intricate relationships seeking a form”
b. If things become too complex then they can no longer function
28) Baucis
a. “that they love it as it was before they existed and with spyglasses and telescopes aimed downward they never tire of examining it, leaf by leaf, stone by stone, ant by ant, contemplating with fascination their own absence”
b. There could be many reasons for many actions
29) Leandra
a. “But that does not mean they only live in memories”
b. People always believe things could be better
30) Melania
a. “Melina’s population renews itself”
b. Continuous cycle
31) Esmeralda
a. “all these routes, solid and liquid, evident and hidden”
b. There are many more ways than roads, to get around a city
32) Phyllis
a. “Phyllis is a space in which routes are drawn between points suspended in the void”
b. You lose the charm of the city if you live there
33) Pyrrha
a. “the name means this and could mean nothing like this”
b. Defining a city by name creates constraints
34) Adelma
a. “You reach a moment in life when, among the people you have known the dead outnumber the living”
b. When you look to others that you don’t recognize, you see people that you’ve known and so do they – searching for recognition
35) Eudoxia
a. “the other is an approximate reflection, like every human creation”
b. You can see meaning in an entire lack of meaning if you stare hard enough
36) Moriana
a. “it consists only of a face and obverse, like a sheet of paper, with a figure on one side, which can neither be separated nor look at each other”
b. Cities have a pretty pleasant face, and a broken down poor face
37) Clarice
a. “they grabbed everything that could be taken from where it was and put to a different use”
b. Cities become different cities with no connecting
38) Eusapia
a. “in twin cities there is no longer a way of knowing who is alive and who is dead”
b. If everything is the same, there can be no way to see a difference
39) Beersheba
a. “A city which, only when it shits, is not miserly, calculating, greedy”
b. When you are so obsessed with perfection than you become empty
40) Leonia
a. “the more Leonia expels goods, the more it accumulates them”
b. Many are just focused on having new objects rather than sensibly repairing the old which is practical
41) Irene
a. “Irene is a name for a city in the distance, and if you approach, it changes”
b. Your first perception of the city could be entirely different than what the city actually is like and is a entirely different city itself
42) Argia
a. “it has earth instead of air”
b. An imagined city
43) Thekla
a. “”there is the blueprint”, they say”
b. Continuous construction without having an original product leads to nothing
44) Trude
a. “I would have thought I was landing at the same airport from which I had taken off”
b. Cities really are, in essence, the same
45) Olinda
a. “and within the innermost circle they are already blossoming”
b. Cities are constantly changing and renewing themselves
46) Laudomia
a. “for different cities that could have been there and were not, or reasons that tare incomplete contradictory, disappointing”
b. Limited overabundance
47) Perinthia
a. “the order of the gods is reflected exactly in the city of monsters”
b. Atheism
48) Procopia
a. “even the sky has disappeared. I might as well leave the window”
b. Spirits
49) Raissa
a. “every second the unhappy city contains a happy city unaware of its own existence”
b. Being thankful
50) Andria
a. “only city I know where it is best to remain motionless in time”
b. Interconnectedness
51) Cecelia
a. “Cecelia is everywhere”
b. Similarities
52) Marozia
a. “You will see a crack open and a different city appear”
b. Possibilities are everywhere
53) Penthesilea
a. “a soupy city diluted in the plain”
b. Interconnectedness
54) Theodora
a. “the exclusive image of human city that still distinguishes it”
b. By attempting to thwart nature, it comes back stronger and more powerful
55) Bernice
a. “this seed ferments in bitterness, rivalry, resentment”
b. Infinite possibilities
Question Paragraph:
The narrator in Calvino’s work is Marco Polo. Marco Polo was Venetian, which is why Venice is such a significant part of the story. Historically, Marco Polo was known as a notorious traveler, which is why the author chose to use him as the ideal narrator. Marco Polo is ideally suited to narrate this story and is a believable character. Marco Polo decides to change his perspective as narrator several times during his story telling. At points his perspective is first person, at other times it is third person omnipotent. I believe Marco Polo chooses this narration style because at certain points it makes a more powerful statement.
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