September 4, 2011

Nainen ja kuolema or a dark bound between sexuality and death

Yläkuva:  Der Tod und das Mädchen. Alakuva: Woman and Death [Hans Baldung Grien].
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Come on baby, don't fear the reaper, baby take my hand, don't fear the reaper, we'll be able to fly, don't fear the reaper, baby I'm your man [Blue Öyster Cult]
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[Kielimafian linkkilisäys eli osa IV - klo: 12.00].

I
1
Death and the Maiden

This theme has a multi-faceted past. It is rooted in very old mythological traditions: among the ancient Greeks, the abduction of Persephone (Proserpine among the Romans) by Hades (Pluto), god of Hell, is a clear prefiguration of the clash between Eros and Thanatos. The young goddess gathered flowers in company of carefree nymphs when she saw a pretty narcissus and plucked it. At that moment, the ground opened; Hades came out of the underworld and abducted Persephone.

This old vision will take a new form at the end of the 15th century and become the theme of Death and the maiden, which will culminate in Germany at the Renaissance. In many dances of Death already figured a representation of Death with a fine lady or with a beautiful virgin. The image of a young woman was also found in the three ages and Death. However in both cases, there was no trace of erotism. But with Death and the maiden theme, something new happened. People discovered a dark bound between sexuality and death.

In this type of iconography, the young lady was not involved in a dance anymore, but in a sensual intercourse, which will become always more erotic as time went by. Unlike the dance of death, the Death and the maiden pictures dont have any verses to explain them. Due to that, this new kind of illustration lost somewhat of its dramatic intensity; its didactic role became less impotant. On the other hand, this form of art gained a kinf of intimacy. However in spite of the sensuality of this genre, it still had a moralistic goal; it kept on pointing out the fact that life is short as is the proud beauty of a woman. Her body, her face, her hair and her chest will someday feed the worms. The theme of Death and the maiden has sometimes been used pretexts to represent female nudity.

2
In the vast geographical expanse that was the Holy Roman Empire in fifteenth- and sixteenth-century Europe, popular notions of women as powerfully erotic and seductive arose. Drawing inspiration from the Old Testament story of Eve's involvement in the Fall of Man, some Renaissance intellectuals north of the Alps associated the female sex with evil, witchcraft and the malevolent role of syphilis in the dissolution of medieval society's idyllic idea of love. Now a European special exhibition examines the works of German Renaissance artist Hans Baldung Grien (1484/85-1545) and how he and his contemporaries portrayed such anxieties visually.

II
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XoZJkkWX8Yw&feature=related
Franz Schubert - Death and the Maiden - Quartet in D Minor
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Satunnainen kommentaattori kirjoittaa: 'I played this in my quartet a while back. This has to be one of my favorite compostions...ever. The cello part was the coolest things I've ever played. Everytime I listen to it I fall in love again.'

III
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUO_5EALZoM
Blue Oyster Cult - Don't Fear the Reaper
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All our times have come
Here but now they're gone
Seasons don't fear the reaper
Nor do the wind, the sun or the rain..we can be like they are
Come on baby...don't fear the reaper
Baby take my hand...don't fear the reaper
We'll be able to fly...don't fear the reaper
Baby I'm your man...

Valentine is done
Here but now they're gone
Romeo and Juliet
Are together in eternity...Romeo and Juliet
40,000 men and women everyday...Like Romeo and Juliet
40,000 men and women everyday...Redefine happiness
Another 40,000 coming everyday...We can be like they are
Come on baby...don't fear the reaper
Baby take my hand...don't fear the reaper
We'll be able to fly...don't fear the reaper
Baby I'm your man...

Love of two is one
Here but now they're gone
Came the last night of sadness
And it was clear she couldn't go on
Then the door was open and the wind appeared
The candles blew then disappeared
The curtains flew then he appeared...saying don't be afraid
Come on baby...and she had no fear
And she ran to him...then they started to fly
They looked backward and said goodby...she had become like they are
She had taken his hand...she had become like they are
Come on baby...don't fear the reaper
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IV
http://actuspurunen.blogspot.com/2008/10/yllinen-tapaaminen-sadunomainen.html
Yöllinen tapaaminen [sadunomainen kauhukertomus] on sekin muunnelma päreen teemasta.
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http://www.lamortdanslart.com/fille/maiden.htm
http://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Baldung
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Baldung
http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/baldung/ages/
http://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tytt%C3%B6_ja_kuolema
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_and_the_Maiden_(motif)
http://arthistory.about.com/od/namesgg/l/bl_sp_grien.htm
http://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franz_Schubert
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franz_Schubert
http://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/(Don't_Fear)_The_Reaper
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/(Don't_Fear)_The_Reaper
http://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_%C3%96yster_Cult
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_%C3%96yster_Cult

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