Archives for March 18, 2016

HW due 3/21: Siddhartha

March 18, 2016 By

1. Siddhartha–Read  and annotate Kamala and Amongst the People.
2. Class Forum
3. Mandala Project due March 30th

(Due Monday, March 21st!) Research and take notes on The Mandala. Be sure to visit this link to get a sense of the process of making a mandala. This is the beginning step of the Mandala Project! 

Mandala notes:

Carl Jung and the mandala:

“I had to abandon the idea of the superordinate position of the ego. … I saw that everything, all paths I had been following, all steps I had taken, were leading back to a single point — namely, to the mid-point. It became increasingly plain to me that the mandala is the centre. It is the exponent of all paths. It is the path to the centre, to individuation… I knew that in finding the mandala as an expression of the self I had attained what was for me the ultimate.” – C. G. Jung. Memories, Dreams, Reflections.

If we agree that the center of the mandala represents this center of the universe, thus the center of the self (the true self), then what would reside at the center of you…your true self. As seen in many of the examples, much, if not all, of the mandala is abstract expression. Certainly the center of the mandala should be abstract as it is a representation of your Self; yet, as you move beyond the center, closer to the edge, your visual may become more concrete as you are closer to your persona/ego, that which is tangible/material. So how will you represent your true self… We understand that the mandala is an expression of Self at the moment of its (the mandala’s) creation as the Self is always a work in progress.

How to Draw a Mandala

The Mandala will be worth 150 points and count as a project/essay grade. Keep in mind:

  • Your base structure of your mandala should be a series of geometric shapes. The primary, and largest, shape must be a geometric shape.  Within there must be an arrangement of smaller geometric shapes.
  • All geometric shapes must be PRECISE. The craftsmanship in general should be precise.
  • The Mandala should use colors meaningfully. Meaning, you should be able to explain why you chose the colors you chose.
  • All visuals beyond the base structure should be purposeful and powerful. Meaning, there should be a rationale for everything present in your Mandala and that rationale should be of great significance to you. Further, the images should be aesthetically pleasing in presentation.
  • The Mandala should reflect great creative effort!
  • The Mandala should reflect great overall effort!
  • The Mandala should reflect you!

As for dimensions, there is flexibility here: if square 12-16 inches on each side; if circular, appx. 12-16 inches in diameter. Once again, there is flexibility here.  Review the following link to get another sense of the creation process. Note that the structure of the mandala should consist of precise geometric shapes.

HW due 3/22: Romantic Poem and Transcendental Poetry

March 18, 2016 By

“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practise resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to live so sturdily and Spartan-like as to put to rout all that was not life, to cut a broad swath and shave close, to drive life into a corner, and reduce it to its lowest terms, and, if it proved to be mean, why then to get the whole and genuine meanness of it, and publish its meanness to the world; or if it were sublime, to know it by experience, and be able to give a true account of it in my next excursion. For most men, it appears to me, are in a strange uncertainty about it, whether it is of the devil or of God, and have somewhat hastily concluded that it is the chief end of man here to “glorify God and enjoy him forever.” -Thoreau

1. Romantic Poem–Considering what you learned in class Thursday and considering the Romantic poems read over the past several days (take inspiration from the themes, ideas, and social implications), this weekend you will write your very own Romantic Poem! So, your poem should reflect an understanding of Romanticism. Heading:

Name
Poetry Seminar
3/22/16
#5: Romantic Poem

1. Transcendentalism–Print, read, and annotate the following poems:

Song of Myself
Inspiration
I Sit and Look Out