Laughter in The Heptameron (Navarre) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Laughter in The Heptameron (Navarre) - Essay Example In First Day, Story One, humor can be found in the way the wife of St. Aignan juggled her husband, the Bishop of Ses and Du Mesnil as her lovers. Navarre used the woman's servant to show the serving lady's critique on her mistress' sexual morality when she wrote; 'The good woman felt sorry for him (Du Mesnil). There he was, a good-looking, well-bred young man, so much in love, and so badly treated in return!' (Navarre 72). It could be noted that Navarre did not directly criticize the seemingly lack of sexual morality in her characters. The servant was her mouthpiece to point out the fact that Du Mesnil had no moral sexuality in pursuing her mistress. He was described as 'good-looking' and decidedly capable of finding suitable, eligible love interests. Since he chose to indulge in a married woman, he was partly responsible for the treatment he received when he had no access to his married lover. Du Mesnil had been made the comic fool by his persistent trust in the woman. He fell into her trap and was slain by St. Aignan's servants. It was funny how the wronged and weak brought destruction upon themselves. Navarre used a combination of dialogue and narrative to show showed how gullible Du Mesnil was; 'Off he went, never dreaming that she was planning to trap him, while she took his servant back to her house and gave him some supper.' (Navarre 73). It was not a surprise that the woman who lacked sexual morality was also lacking in moral scruples. The weak St. Aignan made a fool of himself when we read that he showed off his pretended valor when; 'he thrust his dagger a dozen or so times into the body of the man on whom he would never have dared lay a finger had he been alive.' (Navarre 74). St. Aignan made a comical figure with his false bravery. It was a critique on the weak huaband who could not comment nor do anything on his wife's moral sexuality while his Du Mesnil was alive. It was comical how events did not turn out the way the characters planned them. St. Aignan planned to get rid of his wife. Navarre's narration said that he made a wax doll to cast a spell of ill will on her because he felt that; 'It was she who was at the bottom of all this trouble, and he was quite certain she would never renounce her wicked ways.' (Navarre 77). He had no sexual morality because he did not want to preserve the sexual relations that bond him to his wife. The same could be said about the woman. She wanted to rid herself of the restriction that imposed sexual morality on her so she devised her own measures to save her skin while condemning her husband. Although she did get past criminal jurisdiction for her wickedness, she did not enjoy a good life thereafter. At the end of the story, Navarre revealed that the story teller was Simontaut, whose objective was to chastise women who lacked sexual morality. Navarre incorporated the critique on sexual morality in the form of a witty exchange amongst her story tellers, Simontaut, Parlamente and Oisille. Sinc e this story was a moral condemnation of a woman's marital infidelity, Navarre had set the stage for the next story teller, Oisille, who said she was compelled to tell a story to contrast with this and redeem the virtues of good women with good sexual morality. (Navarre 71-78).

Mona Lisa Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Mona Lisa - Essay Example There is a general consensus among historians that the Mona Lisa was done between 1503 and 1519. The painting was requested by Francesco Del Giocondo, the subject’s husband and a rich silk merchant. Lisa Gherardin, who was Giocondo’s wife, came from a prominent family. The Mona Lisa is thought to have been painted to celebrate the completion of the couple’s house in 1503 and to mark the birth of Andrea, the couple’s second son, in 1502.The identity of the portrait had been a subject of speculations but in 2005, its real identity was discovered(Earls 113). The Mona Lisa is a half length portrait of a beautiful lady. The lady’s hair is covered by a delicate dark cloak. During renaissance period, a dark veil was considered a mourning veil and may have been representing the subject’s mourning of her daughter who died in 1549.Her clothing is simple. The scarp that is wrapped around her shoulders, the pleated gown and the yellow sleeve do not show any signs of nobility. The Mona Lisa was painted basing on a realistic scale. The portrait is half length and the woman is presented from the head to the waist. She is sitting in an arm chair while her left arm is resting on the chair’s arm. The arm of the chair is situated in front of loggia, which is characterized by two fragmentary pillars that form the frame of the figure and form a window that faces the background. The aesthetic nature of this artwork highlights the influence of Lombard and Florentine art of the late 15th century and early 16th century. Aspects of artwork such as the architectural settings, hands put together in the forefront, and the view of the portrait against the landscape were common in Flemish portraits of the late 15th century. However, Leornardo managed to introduce several unique and special features in The Mona Lisa. The new features are the sheer equilibrium of the painting, the monumentality, and the atmospheric illusionism exhibited by the M ona Lisa (Kemp 79). The Mona Lisa is a unique oil painting whose surface consists of cotton wood panel unlike most of the paintings that were done by other artists during Leonardo’s period, which were commonly commissioned as oil on canvas. Actually, the use of cotton wood panel as the surface of the Mona Lisa is one of the factors that have been attributed to its fame. In addition, the cotton wood panel medium has contributed to its durability. The Mona Lisa has survived for six centuries without any alteration or repair, a factor that makes it different from other artworks. Although most of renaissance period artworks denoted biblical themes, the Mona Lisa did not portray any religious theme but was created to mark Giocondo’s achievements (Earls 114).The painting shows Leornardo’s mastery of using identifiable marks when presenting his artwork. The use of shadowing technique at the corners of the eyes and lips gives the portrait a look of a delight and lifelik e appearance. Leornado also developed a background that had attractive scenery and an aerial view. The technique used by Leornado when painting did not leave