Agony And The Ecstacy :: essays research papers

The Agony and the Ecstacy depicts Michelangelo’s struggle to become the embodiment of Renaissance humanism. In the course of the novel Michelangelo must overcome the interference of his family, religious dogma, political intrigue, papal patronage, military campaigns, and artistic jealousy to realize his artistic ambition. Despite his father’s opposition, twelve-year-old Michelangelo becomes an apprentice, first to painter Ghirlandaio and then to Bertoldo, a sculptor, who directs a school financed by Lorenzo de’ Medici, patron of Florentine art. Michelangelo quickly wins Lorenzo’s esteem, meets his children (among Them two future popes, Giulio and Giovanni, and Contessina, his first love), suffers the first of several attacks by jealous colleagues (his nose is broken by Trrigiani, whose later appearances always threaten Michelangelo), and through forbidden dissection learns the anatomy and physiology he needs. Eventually Savonarola, a reform priest, comes to power, and his crusading zeal threatens Lorenzo de’ Medici’s family and the Florentine art world. When Savonarola gains political, as well as religious control, Michelangelo flees Florence and travels to Bologna, where he meets the sensuous Clarissa Saffi and carves the Bambino that attracts the attention of Leo Baglioni. In Rome for the first time, Michelangelo meets Jacopo Galli, a banker, who commissions a sculpture; Giuliano Sangallo, an architect; and Bramante, another architect and an adversary. In Rome, Michelangelo carves the Pieta, learns about the whims of religious patrons, and becomes interested in St. Peter’s – the building of the new St. Peter’s will embroil him in controversy and ultimately consume his last years. Michelangelo return to Florence, where he carves â€Å"the Giant,† a sculpture of David which becomes the symbol of Florence. There he meets Leonardo da Vinci, his principal rival, and Raphael, the painter – the three become the triumvirate of Renaissance Italian art. Jealous of Leonardo Michelangelo competes with him as the two artists paint frescoes for the rulers of Florence. Word of Michelangelo’s work reaches Pope Julius, who forces Michelangelo to work in bronze, rather than his beloved marble, and to paint the Sistine Chapel ceiling. It is Julius who resolves to build a new St. Peter’s. Julius is followed by two Medici popes who only add to Michelangelo’s problems: Giovanni, by forcing him to work with marble from Pietrasanta, an almost inaccessible region, thereby making Michelangelo an engineer, and Giulio, against whose forces Michelangelo must use his engineering talents to fortify the city of Florence. The Medici popes are followed by Pope Paul III, who commissions Michelangelo to paint the Last Judgment and who, after bitter disputes about the ongoing building of St.

Vegetarianism

Meat: It Does My Body Good I eat meat; I drink milk; I eat eggs. I don’t eat it at every meal, but I do eat it daily. For the sake of this essay, I will state that I, clearly, am not a vegetarian. Let me begin by explaining the term vegetarian as used in this essay: a vegetarian is a person that does not consume meat. There multiple forms of vegetarianism: ovo-vegetarian diet includes eggs but not dairy products; lacto-vegetarian diet includes dairy products but not eggs; ovo-lacto vegetarian diet includes dairy and eggs but not meat.A vegan is the strictest vegetarian diet and excludes all animal products including eggs, dairy and honey. Some vegetarian diets, however, do include fish or chicken, but not ‘red’ meat. After reading several articles on the pros and cons of being, or not being, a vegetarian, I came upon an article by William T. Jarvis, PH. D entitled â€Å"Why I Am Not A Vegetarian† that encompassed many of my same views. Dr. Jarvis, now retir ed, was a professor of public health and preventive medicine at Lorna Linda University, and founder and president of The National Council Against Health Fraud and he is a Seventh Day Adventist.Seventh Day Adventists are strong believers in vegetarianism, which is one reason why I enjoyed his opposing viewpoint. In the article by Dr. Jarvis, several topics and theories are discussed including his observation on classifying vegetarians in two behavioral categories: pragmatic or ideologic. A pragmatic vegetarian is rational and most often are vegetarian out of health related concerns, but an ideologic vegetarian is one that is more emotionally rooted in the behavior ‘as a matter of principle’ so to speak. It is his views on the pragmatic vegetarian that closely mirror my own. In the article, Dr.Jarvis points out that it is possible to obtain all the essential nutrients needed, except vitamin B-12, by eating a vegetarian diet; however, he also points out that the same can b e said for eating an all meat diet, too. While I understand the need that some have to refrain from eating certain foods for health related issues, I believe that our body needs meat. Also, to me, meat tastes good. The quality of protein from meat exceeds the quality of protein from plants. Meat contains much more protein by mass, and this protein contains all the essential amino acids, in the correct balance.Meat is also rich is Iron which is needed by pregnant women and middle-aged women approaching menopause. Many argue that there are certain health risks of eating meat, especially red meat, but they often tend to be exaggerated. Avoid processed meat and try to eat lean meat as much as possible, and meat can be very healthy in the diet, and does not increase risk of heart disease or cancer, as Dr. Jarvis also pointed out in his article quoting scientific data from nutrition-related research supports vegetarianism only tentatively.Another reason I think eating meat is healthier th an a vegetarian diet is that we, humans, are fully able to digest meat. We have canine teeth, which allow us to chew meat, and enzymes in our stomach and small intestine to digest it. In conclusion, eating meat tends to be an economical option for nutrition overall. While it is possible to get all the nutrients in meat on a vegetarian diet, it is much more difficult, often resulting in the need to obtain various types of grains to ensure that no vitamins, minerals, or amino acids are missing.This can be inconvenient and costly, and difficult to prepare. Meat supplies us with the vitamins we need in everyday life. Although, the other articles I read are opposed to meat eating; they still share the health risks of not eating meat, and that meat does the body good. Work Cited â€Å"Why I Am Not a Vegetarian. † Why I Am Not a Vegetarian. N. p. , n. d. Web. 25 Sept. 2012. <http://www. quackwatch. org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/vegan. html>.

How the Characters of Macbeth and the Duke in My Last...

I am examining the characters of the Duke and Macbeth and how they can be considered disturbed characters. The play, ‘Macbeth’ and poem, ‘My Last Duchess’ both show psychological truths and insights into the characters. While the Duke shows himself to be disturbed straight away in the poem, Macbeth’s mental deterioration takes place and develops as the play proceeds. ‘Macbeth’ written by William Shakespeare and set in 1050 contains themes of status, power and death while ‘My Last Duchess’ by Robert Browning written in 1842 shows how status, wealth and the marriage market can affect a man’s life. Macbeth at first is a well-respected and liked character. He shows himself to be ‘brave’ and is given the position of the ‘Thane of Cawdor’.†¦show more content†¦However as King, there is no-one who has a higher status than his which then leads Macbeth to associate with people of a lower class than the people he is obligated to. When talking to the murderers it is pointed out that ‘there is blood upon thy face’ which shows that Macbeth instigated the murder of a friends. The two scenes symbolise how Macbeth has become infatuated with power and is willing to do anything to keep it. This exhibits his obsessive nature. Macbeth’s use of language in Act 5, Scene 5 infers that life is pointless. He suggests that life until we die means nothing. ‘Creeps in this petty pace from day To the last syllable of recorded time.’ During this scene he finds out Lady Macbeth died, showing the extent that he relies on his wife. Shakespeare uses the scene to tell the audience that you can’t control destiny and what happens in life. This relates to his disturbed mind as he tried to control his destiny. An emphasis is put on the fact the word ‘tomorrow’ is repeated. It implies that Macbeth won’t have a ‘tomorrow.’ Shakespeare uses language to show how much Macbeth has changed throughout the play. At first he was a respected character and gradually becomes more disturbed. Thus scene suggests that he is essentially lost and resigned to his fate. The Duke however is a possessive and materialistic character. This is shown through the title ‘My Last Duchess’. ‘My’ displays how even