What You Take With You

As I sit here letting the music of U2 wash over me in wave after wave, I find myself wondering about the meaning of art and I can't help it if Professor Leeper's words keep resonating deep within my subconscious.  He adamantly expresses that the book entitled "Mary" was a rather poor example of literary prowess.  Yet, the woman he describes from his experiences WEEPS at the mere reading of the novel.  Something in that book transcended the boundaries of the dogeared pages and penetrated deep into her psyche.  Was Professor Leeper's experience with this particular novel marred by his reluctance to see the book from her perspective?  Most certainly not.  The book in question may very well have been poorly written and Professor Leeper had a higher standard for literature than what the book offered.  Some might see this as the difference between "High and Low Art."  A Botticelli painting in Professor Leeper's mind holds far more significance than the novel "Mary" ever did.  Is that merely because the painting is better than the book?  To that I say no again.  The great thing about art is that you can take from it exactly what you want.  Whether you like it or not people are going to interpret the same piece of artwork differently than you do.  For example...

This piece is called "The Raft Of The Medusa."  It was first introduced to me back in 2006 in my European History Class.  It has stuck in my mind for years as quite possibly my favorite painting of all time.  I don't expect everyone to love it the same way that I do but I believe it to be good art.  If you find the idea of "High and Low Art" to be a stupid argument...  Fear not!  For Bill Watterson thought it was stupid as well!