 As summer comes to an end, I start to write my internship report. The air is cooling down a bit as the sun sets, but the sticky heat lingers and continues to drain me. I reach out for the air conditioner, but, frankly, it is insufficient at the best of times. As usual, reruns and bad movies dominate the television. So, I turn to my books instead.
Sound familiar? It's just another of the ordinary afternoons that much of us have faced as the hazy days of summer die out. It was a hot one this year, and the heat kept many students from even daring to venture outside.
The fading summer days also brought some sad news. Much loved Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti, whose sound influenced the opera world, died at age 71. The world grieved the loss of a legend. This came on the heels of a very busy summer, indeed. Historical and controversial elections were held in Turkey, while drought forced the city water to be cut off in Ankara for a time. As more and more people died in traffic accidents, wildfires burned much of the country's remaining forests. And, what about the rest of the world? Well, we don't really pay attention to what doesn't directly concern us, right? Or do we?
As they always do, the events of the summer have now passed, and September has come once again. It's time to turn our attention back to school. For first year students, it can be a bit hard to fit in at first. Everyone gets used to the way things work around here pretty fast though, so no worries.
I would like to point out a book I read this summer that may interest you: "The Devil's Pool", by George Sand. It's a fantastic book that analyzes village life in the 19th century. It highlights the struggle of the poor just to stay alive. The characters are very strong and the style of writing makes the book an easy read. Sand makes a statement at the beginning of the book saying that she was influenced by a Hans Holbein The Younger gravure called "The Ploughman" from his "Dance Of Death" series. In this gravure there is a quatrain, which reads "Death runs at the horses' sides as the sun sinks, and the furrows are completed."1 As Sand explains in the beginning of the book, she is startled by the simplicity of the ploughman's life and his way of thinking about death.
As a side note, Holbein the Younger (1497-1543) was a German artist and printmaker who worked in a Northern Renaissance style. He was born in Augsburg, Bavaria.2 By the time he reached his forties he became a court painter in England. He died while painting a portrait of the king.3
The gravure can be seen at the beginning of this column. The idea that the ploughman was so familiar with death was thrilling in its own way. Holbein depicts death as working with the ploughman. The book illustrates how the impoverished of the time lived everyday with death as their neighbor.
In my opinion, this famed author has, once again, highlighted the importance of the arts in helping to understanding society. I strongly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys world classics.
I fare you well for now…
1- http://www.gutenberg.org /files/21790/21790-h/21790-h.htm#h2H_4_0034
2- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Hans_Holbein_the_Younger
3- http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/ paint/ auth/holbein/
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