The Gediminas Castle Essay Example for Free

The Gediminas Castle Essay The funicular is 71m long and will take you 40m high. The angle is said to be 36 degrees. Opening hours 10.00 19.00 all year round. Tickets: up and down adults 3Lt, pensioners and school children 2Lt up OR down adults 2 Lt, pensioners and school children 1Lt The so called Upper Castle, or Gediminas Castle, was built at the beginning of the 14th century on the site of an earlier wooden one. A century later it was rebuilt and strenghtened. Along with the Lower Castle (now gone) and the defensive wall it formed a powerful defensive system. But slowly itlost its importance and after the damage caused in the war with Russia in 1655, it was left unrebuilt. After the World War II the best surviving tower was restored. It now houses a museum and an observa- tion platform. The museum is open: May Sept 10.00 19.00 whole week Oct April Tuesday to Sunday, 10.00 to 17.00. Entrance fee 5Ltl for adults, pensioners and school children 2Ltl. To the east of the tower are the ruins of the ducal palace. The Gediminas Tower is an important historic symbol of the city of Vilnius and of Lithuania. It is the only remaining part of the Upper Castle. The first wooden fortifications were built by Gediminas the Duke of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. There is historic evidence of a castle being located at the top of Gediminas Hill since the early 14th century. The original castle was made of wood and there is uncertaintainty around when exactly the stone castle was built. Originally the castle was built to protect the city of Vilnius from invaders and gave a great vantage point ove the city and surrounding countryside. Over the centuries the city of Vilnius was attacked five times but the castle was never successfully taken. It was only in the 17th century, during the war with Moscow, did the castle finally succumb to foreign invasion when  it was nearly completely destroyed. Recently, parts of the castle have been restored, but access to the interior of the castle is still not possible for visitors. Fairly easy walk (assuming youre wearing good walking shoes) up Gedeminas Hill allows for wonderful views of Vilnius. The orange-red roofs of old town spread out below, while taller modern buildings can be seen in the distance, a reminder that Vilnius is both a historical site and modern, living city. At the top of the hill stands the remains of the Upper Castle, built in the 15th century. Inside the tower is a museum detailing some of the citys history. Climb to the top of the tower for even better views of the city below. For a change of pace, take the funicular down to the bottom of the hill when youre ready to leave. Its a fun ride, and quick! The first timber castle was built on Castle Mount by Grand Duke Gediminas around 1320. It was replaced by a brick one in the second half of the 14th century, which had to be re-built by Grand Duke Vytautas after a fire in 1419. The castle served the Polish kings as a bell foundry and a jail and, later, as King Sigismund Augusts library. In 1655 it was conquered by the Muscovites, which was the start of its gradual decline. The only remaining part of it at present is just one tower which houses the Museum of the Castle. From its top you can admire the panorama of Vilnius. Unfortunately, we could only see the castle from below. There were no signposts to the funicular and it was getting too late for us to attempt a walk. The pictures of the panorama of the town were taken by my friend on her stay in Vilnius. All Lithuanians know a legend about establishment of Vilnius city. It was the beginning of 14th century when Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas stopped for an overnight near confluence of Neris and Vilnele rivers. That night he dreamt an iron wolf howling on a hill. In the morning his soothsayer Lizdeika explained his dream as a sign for him to build here a city as it will become a well known and widely resounded in all over the World. Gediminas ordered to pour a mound at the same place he slept. On the hill there a castle was built, the predecessor for the nowadays Gediminas castle. According to archeological researches, the hill where Gediminas castle stands nowadays was already inhabited in a Neolithic period. In 11-13th centuries a wooden castle here stood. The same as Vilnius city, it was mentioned in 1323 for the first time. For more than 250 years since 1315, when a dynasty of GediminaiÄ iai ruled the Grand Duke of Lithuania, the complex of Vilnius castles served as a solid defensive structure. The complex included the Bottom castle, the Upper castle and the Skew castle. The Bottom castle extended in a territory of a few hectares. It stood at the same place where now the Vilnius Cathedral stands. It looked as a separate city as it included a school, an arsenal, stables, living buildings, a cathedral. However, it finally vanished in 1800. The newly built Palace of Grand Dukes of Lithuania nowadays symbolizes the former Bottom Castle. The Skew castle stood on the Skew hill, the same one which nowadays is known as the Bleak hill where a monument called â€Å"Three Crosses† is erected. The Skew castle was burnt in 1390 by German Order. Remains of the Upper castle are still standing on Gediminas hill. This castle is also called Gediminas castle. There were times when it was one of the most important political centers in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. There is also a tower of Gediminas castle located which can be seen well from any place in Vilnius Old Town. The tower nowadays serves as a museum, an observation square and a symbol of Vilnius and the whole Lithuania. The museum located in the tower of Gediminas castle is a part of National museum of Lithuania. There is an exposition called â€Å"Guns and an iconography of the castle† exposed. Visitors can get acquainted with models of the complex of Vilnius castles, historical weaponry and iconography of the old Vilnius. Tourists can climb up the Gediminas hill themselves in order to visit the castle and the tower or they can use an elevator working there daily. Marvelous views of Vilnius city open from the top of the Gediminas hill. Some people, especially youth, like settling on a spacious stone fence here and watch the city life from above. It is an impressive place where young fellows like to take their girlfriends, city guides always include this destination to tours around Vilnius, the hill is often visited by schoolchildren excursions and separate tourists. The only inconvenience about the place is that you must be on time to get down the hill in order  not to be locked in the hill territory. The hill is not available to climb up all day long.

Context and Contradictions in Platos Phaedrus and Platos Symposium Es

Context and Contradictions in Plato's Phaedrus and Plato's Symposium It is well known that Plato, a devoted student of Socrates, chronicled many of Socrates' speeches and conversations. Every so often one can find instances where Socrates and other players in these conversations seem to contradict themselves, or at least muddle their arguments. One such occurrence of this is in Plato's Symposium and Plato's Phaedrus. Both texts speak of love in its physical sense, both texts describe love and its effects, and both discuss how it is best realized, yet they do this in very different fashions, and for different reasons. Plato's Phaedrus is a conversation between Socrates and Phaedrus. In this conversation the young Phaedrus is overjoyed to tell Socrates of the speech that he had just heard Lysias, "The best writer living" (Plato Phaedrus 22), tell. In this speech Lysias uses his rhetorical skills to argue that physical love without emotional attachment is preferable to physical love with emotional attachment, "That is the clever thing about it; he makes out that an admirer who is not in love is to be preferred to one who is" (Plato Phaedrus 22). Socrates listens to this speech, as relayed by Phaedrus and quickly becomes aware that this speech was a ploy by Lysias to get Phaedrus into bed with him. Socrates then fashions a speech, on the spot, that argues the same points that Lysias did. Socrates? speech is going well but is interrupted by "divine sign." Socrates then has to fashion a new speech that renounces the blasphemous nature of the first. Socrates? second speech contains the famous image of l ove as a charioteer with two horses. He also addresses the nature of the soul and the effects that love has on it (which will be ... ...ut different contexts and thus different ideals. The differences in the manner in which they reference love is nothing short of appalling. It would seem as though Eros was a God who (and whose gifts) came under much criticism, so much so that Socrates and Phaedrus needed to define Eros, both the verb and the God. Then the same discussion takes place in Symposium but with quite a different outcome. Men are Men; they change, as do their ideas. In this case the change in ideas came from context; different goals were trying to be achieved. This does not mean that either text is more or less valid or has more or less value than the other. For in both Eros is still given his due. Works Cited: Plato. "Phaedrus." The Works of Plato. Trans. B. Jowett. New York: The Dial Press, n.d. Plato. The Symposium. Ed. Christopher Gill. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books, 1999.

Absolutism and Baroque Art in 17th Century

Europe in the 17th century was a continent in upheaval. Even this early on, it must be acknowledged that what was just said can be considered as an understatement. There is just not enough space and enough phraseology to describe the depth and sweeping changes occurring at that time. The transformation from Medieval Europe into Industrialized Europe can be likened to birth pangs – painful experiences that would result in something amazing if one can only go through the ordeal.In this period of turbulence there are two ideas and concepts that until now has caught the imagination of historians and art connoisseurs: a) Absolutism (political/religious) and b) Baroque (art). The complexity of these two terms offers a glimpse into a Europe emerging from slumber and into a collection of states that will rule the world. This paper will look into the relationship of absolutism and Baroque art in the context of the events that shaped 17th century Europe.At the end of the study the follo wing questions will be answered:1. What exactly is absolutism?2. What is Baroque art?3. What exactly is the relationship between absolutism and Baroque art?Absolutism For a 21st century American, a simple understanding of absolutism may be a form of rule that is anti-democratic. The modern world is so used to freedom of speech, freedom to assemble/protest and finally ability to choose its own leaders. Thus, anything that displays the opposite is ofcourse absolutism.But an accurate definition of absolutism is problematic. First of all there is an extreme difficulty tracing its origins and how it developed. According to Peter Wilson, in his book, â€Å"Absolutism in Central Europe†, â€Å"There seems little agreement as to when it emerged, what drove it forward, whether it progressed through distinct phases and when it came to an end† (2000, p. 10). But historians could not be denied. Many had pointed to the end of the Thirty Years War, as the beginning of the age of abs olutism.Wilson elaborated on this timeline when he wrote â€Å"The Treaty of Westphalia in 1648 [†¦] not only concluded the Thirty Years War in a major European peace settlement confirming France as a major power, but strengthened the German princes by weakening the authority of the Holy Roman Emperor† (2000, p. 12). Absolutism therefore is a transition phase between the Dark Ages and the coming capitalist society. And to simplify it much further, â€Å"†¦absolutism existed as a real form of monarchy†, according to Wilson (2000, p. 11).It is now easy to understand that this kind of rule which was exemplified by France, can find its origins in the past monarchial systems that ruled Europe and this include the display of absolute power by an infallible pope. Politics and Art The connection between Baroque art and absolutism is subtle. There is no proof that can show that Kings had a direct hand in developing this art form. Still, the force that propagated it an d encouraged it to flourish comes from leadership soaked in absolute power.This is because the line that connects absolutism and Baroque art is the term counter-reformation. It would be helpful to take one step backwards and see the development of counter-reformation and the subsequent use of an art form as a kind of information disseminating tool. It quickly developed into a fashionable thing for Kings to indulge in – collecting Baroque art and commissioning artists to create the same. Baroque Art The cultural product of the 17th century Europe was described as â€Å"Baroque† (Kleiner & Mamiya, 2005, p. 569).Kleiner and Mamiya then added that it is, â€Å"†¦a convenient blanket term. However, this term is problematic because the period encompasses a broad range of developments, both historical and artistic, across an expansive geographic area† (2005, p. 569). Since it is impossible to have an accurate description of Baroque art that will give justice to al l artwork done in this period, then it would be better to console oneself with a basic understanding of Baroque through Mary Marien’s work.In Fleming’s Arts and Ideas, Marien remarked that in this technique there is more emphasis on forceful striving and restless motion as opposed to calm and repose (2004, p. 359). Mariend added that, â€Å"Grandeur and magnificence prevailed in the baroque arts. Emperors, kings, popes, and princes vied with one another to attract great artists to their courts by offering large commissions† (2004, p. 359). Counter-Reformation The motivation and the directive to use baroque arts in the Counter-Reformation was traced by Klein and Zerner.It emanated from the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church and they wrote, â€Å"In reaction to the Protestant’s attacks against images, the Council of Trent, restating the ideas of the 15th century ‘Catholic Reformation,’ required art to regain dignity in its forms and coh erence (Klein & Zerner, 1966, p. 119). But the effect of baroque arts was not merely to create icons that are proper and dignified. It was able to move people by the way the subjects are portrayed.Reich and Cunningham elaborated on this and they wrote: Carvaggio’s work is emotional and dominated by strong contrasts of light and darkness. Annibale Carracci painted scenes of movement and splendor [†¦] Rembrandt used strong contrast of light and dark to paint deeply felt religious scenes†¦(2005, p. 195). Conclusion Attempting to define both Baroque art and absolutism proved to be problematic for the proponent since the two terms were used to describe a wide range of developments in 17th century arts and politics.Still, it was ascertained that absolutism is a form of monarchial rule that existed after Europe emerged from the Medieval Period. It was also a transition phase from the feudal type of governing the land to the more sophisticated nations states and unto the mo re recent capitalistic society of Europe. Around the same time that this kind of governance was used in Europe – of which France was the prime example of a more distinguishable absolutism – there were other events and movements that could be indirectly linked to said form of governance.In reaction to an earlier kind of absolutism – of which the Holy Roman Emperor was the prime example – Protestantism was the result of the discontentment of such rule. The counter-reaction of the Roman Catholic Church to the act of splitting the church in two is a program called counter-reformation. In essence it was a method aimed at strengthening Roman Catholics remaining strongholds at the same time actively defending the Catholic Church from further incursions by the Protestants.Baroque was one of the major tools used to display the superiority of the Roman Catholics, as opposed to the crudeness of the breakaway sect. But it was not only the Church who realized its impo rtance, the rich and royalty spared no expense in collecting and commissioning artists to produce one. Thus, there were two ways that Baroque art became a utilitarian tool in relation to those wielding absolute power. With regards to the Catholic Church an explanation was already given earlier. Concerning royalty, the nobility and wealthy merchants, it was a way of displaying opulence and status.ReferencesReich, J. & Cunningham, L. (2005). Cultures and Values: A Survery of the Humanities. CA: Thomson Wadsworth. Marien, M. (2004). Fleming’s Arts and Ideas. CA: Thomson Wadsworth. Kimmel, M. (1988). Absolutism and Its Discontents: State and Society in Seventeenth Century France and England. New Jersey: Transaction, Inc. Kleiner, F. & Mamiya, C. (2005). Gardner’s Art Through the Ages: The Western Perspective. CA: Thomson Wadsworth. Wilson, P. (2000). Absolutism in Central Europe. New York: Routledge.

Millers Tale - 1044 Words

Do you believe that Chaucer thinks courtly love provides a useful set of rules and behaviors to guide man and women in their relationship? By analyzing two of the major characters, Nicholas and Absalon, and their relative success in relationships, explain what you believe Chaucer is telling us about courtly love though this tale. The Millers tale story is about two characters that were pursuing the attention and affection of the beautiful Alison who was married to John the carpenter. These characters were Nicholas and Absalon. The character whose efforts proved triumphant in doing so was Nicholas. However, Absalon was the character that reminded faithful to the rules of courtly love and his attempts to wins over Alison accomplished†¦show more content†¦Absalon was also very ritualistic. He also brought to Alison gifts and token of his love he sent her sweet wine and mead and spicy ale, and wafers piping hot jars of honey. And as she lived in town, he offered her money (62). Absalon did everything thing imaginable in order to woo her this is truth is revealed in the millers tale, From day to day this jolly Absalon, wooing away, became quite a woe-begone( 62). To receive attention from her Allison he, started singing softly with grace. He did this because he was completely smitten by Alison and was, In the hope that his talent might engage (62) her. Absalon did not keep his for Alison. He announced to her if when john was present. In fact, when Nicholas serenaded Alison outside of her window John would say wife! Do you hear him? There goes Absalon chanting away under our chamber wall (62). Even though Absalon was not successful at winning over Alison, he certainly would have if he was given the opportunity. When he found out that John was absent he said I shall see Alison and tell her all my love-longing, and I can hardly miss some favour from her, at least a kiss.(65). This meant that with john out of the picture believed that he truly had a chance to be with Alison and finally entice her. Absalon followed this ideal idea. He tried to imitate it so that it would work to his advantage. He took it to heart and he highly regarded the idea of courtly live. AbsalonShow MoreRelatedThe Millers Tale501 Words   |  3 PagesThe link between the Miller and the tale he tells is quite a close one; the tale is really a reflection of the character that relates it. We will attempt to prove it by examining the stories genre, the way in which it is narrated, and its intended meaning. The Millers tale is a fabliau, a genre best defined as a dirty story told with wit and point; the tale itself is one of old age, youth, carpentry and cuckoldry.. A character telling such a story can immediately be classified as a memberRead More Comparing The Millers Tale and The Reves Tale Essays1188 Words   |  5 PagesSimilarities in The Millers Tale and The Reves Tale       The Millers Tale and The Reves Tale from The Canterbury Tales are very closely related. They both deal with the relationship between a jealous man, his wife, and a young scholar(s), and they both are immoral stories that contain sex and violence. This proves that the Miller and the Reeve are two very corrupt individuals. However, these tales also share some differences. For instance, the main character inRead MoreMillers Tale Essay1031 Words   |  5 Pagesto guide man and women in their relationship? By analyzing two of the major characters, Nicholas and Absalon, and their relative success in relationships, explain what you believe Chaucer is telling us about courtly love though this tale. The Millers tale story is about two characters that were pursuing the attention and affection of the beautiful Alison who was married to John the carpenter. These characters were Nicholas and Absalon. The character whose efforts proved triumphant in doingRead More Comparing Clothing in Knights Tale and the Millers Tale Essay2560 Words   |  11 Pagesthe Knyghts Tale and the Millers Tale (which is supposed to quit(e) the Knyghts Tale) is that of clothing (the former tale) and lack of clothing (in the latter). Upon an inspection of the General Prologues description of the Knyght, I found that clothing is a very signifcant part of the Knyghts Tale. Chaucers decription of him may forshadow (or, since Chaucer wrote the tales after they were told, color his perceptions of the Knyght) the importance of clothing in the Knyghts Tale. 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At first glance these two tales seem an incongruous pairing. 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Popular belief holds that courtly love was prevalent during the medieval period; however The Millers Tale provides a more realistic look intoRead MoreSimilarities Between The Millers Tale And The Wife Of Bath1507 Words   |  7 Pageswomen perceived in Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales? The Miller’s Tale and The Wife of Bath’s Tale both portray women as having a great deal of sexual desire, which was considered taboo for its time. Alisoun, a character in The Miller’s Tale, and The Wife of Bath are portrayed as being promiscuous, however both of these women find empowerment in demonstrating their sexual agency, which was certainly a taboo perspective for the time in which The Canterbury Tales were written. While the male characters