法國大革命時代的藝術作品對人文教育的啟示—以＜馬拉之死＞與＜1808 年五月三日＞為例

Abstract

This paper interprets two artworks from the French Revolution era–”The death of Marat” and ”The Third of May, 1808”—to compare their rational and sensuous styles, examine the artist's inspiration, and to link the art content to humanity education curriculum.The essay is based on the concept of post-modern art education, which ”art is a product of culture”. We'll view artwork as a process in human culture and life, and examine how people participate in that culture. The essay also proposes that understanding the artwork's meaning can enrich the humanities educational curriculum.In the enlightened period, reason and sensibility were two primary contrasting ways of thoughts approaching reality. ”The death of Marat” is a work of Neo-classicism, and ”The Third of May, 1808” is a work of Romanticism. Neo-classicism and Romanticism are also closely related to the issues of reason and sensibility, respectively.In ”The death of Marat”, the depiction of Marat feels peaceful, moderate, and sublime. It is about a hero's death and expresses an eternal value of reason, urging people to pursue their own ideal. In contrast, ”The Third of May, 1808” shows people who are fragile and fear, while being willing to sacrifice when they face death. The image shows the feeling deep in people's heart and manifests a passionate love of humanity and nature.Through these two works, we understand how these two approaches affect people's thinking and values. Finally, the essay relays the inspiration for these two artworks and the artists' thoughts, to expose potential educational significance, and how we can use their messages.