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Art and Poetry

The figure "Samurai Yoshitsune" (pre-1900s) stands alone, in a position that is both warrior's feint and artist's dance. One hand holds a bamboo stick aloft, as if about to swing it toward his combatant. The other hand reaches for one of his two swords. There is a beautiful symmetry to his position that suggests his grace in combat, while the uptilt of the toes from the heel on the floor suggests a dancer's balletic grace. His clothes are forest green and earthen clay, but the elaborate texture and detailing of the voluminous costuming create a dazzling contrast of camouflage and courtliness. His face is defiant and determined; stoic, perhaps. In this solitary figure, the artist raises the same questions about life, conviction and mortality that William Henley and Emily Bronte ponder in their poetry.

Samurai Yoshitsune, therefore, combines many concepts in a single figure. First, the figure encourages the viewer to consider the relationship between nature and order. The term "samurai" means "those who serve" and samurai were the defenders of a given lord's realm. Samurai warriors, therefore, kept the social order and themselves lived by a very strict code of honor and behavior regarding their duties as samurai. However, the control of land also often means the cultivation of nature. In addition, a warrior often destroys nature through the killing of his combatants.

Thus, a samurai at once defended order while destroying nature. "Samurai Yoshitsune" hints at these contrary concepts not only through the depiction of the samurai, but also through the use of his contrasting weapons. "Samurai Yoshitsune" wields both a bamboo stick and a metal sword. Also, the coloring of his clothes, though elaborate, is in subdued natural hues: green, clay, cream, suggesting perhaps a man who works in nature but who is not entirely natural.

Nevertheless, second, these contrasting concepts in a samurai's life also encourage the vi...

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Art and Poetry. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 19:55, March 28, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1706014.html