Comparative Approaches Flashcards
What is the aim of the comparative approach in history?
identify underlying mechanisms of causation for specific phenomena
What do academics do in order to avoid problems with generalisations?
group cases together based on shared characteristics meaning their contexts are comparable
In what way is the concept of hegemonic masculinity an historical phenomenon?
it has the potential to change and reformulate in different contexts over time
What adds complications to the basic hierarchy of masculinities? (3)
local, regional, and global arenas of masculinity;
tensions within a form of masc;
overall gender dynamics involving women/diverse ethnic groups/diff social classes
How should bodies be understood in the formulation of heg masc?
manifestations of ideals but also agents in the formulation of masc
What are the basic ideas within the concept of hegemonic masc?
plurality of masculinities arranged in a hierarchy with a hegemonic form, rep by a minority of men, with men who do not embody this masc but benefit from it being subordinate
In terms of dealing with material that spans across Greek and Roman contexts, what should be avoided? How should one approach differing contexts?
Building a simplified master historical narrative.
Treat different contexts as distinct with comparisons and contrasts across the chronology and cultures
When understanding the relationship between material evidence and social norms, what are two crucial factors in how normal people interacted with the materials we now have?
Where they were displayed and who was engaging with them
In what ways were depictions of nudity in antiquity greatly varied?
Meaning & interpretation
Context (e.g. public or private) and Audience (e.g. male, female etc.)
Expense
Subject
In both Greece and Rome, what is an indicator of sexual threat?
unintentional nudity, often half undressed
often shown for women, especially with their breasts uncovered
Why was the contextual Aphrodite nude accepted in Greece when depictions of women were expected to be clothed?
her RELIGIOUS role in sex and desire
it wasn’t a sexual gaze necessarily but rather one of religious veneration
How does Bonfante argue nudity is costume in classical G?
it conveys charcteritsics about a subject like their social class, age, ethnicity, gender,
What do the Greek sources say on the Greekness of nude depictions?
it is a respectable tradition that distinguishes Gs from barbarians
In Homeric era, what meaning did nudity carry?
an indication of weakness, shame, and vulnerability
How was pre-historic nudity often depicted?
not fully, usually with the subject wearing a loin cloth
What meanings did male nudity take on in the Geometric period?
heroic, divinity, athletic, and youthfulness
What class, by the 6th cent, had taken on nudity as a means of expressing their social standing? How did this come about?
Aristocrats
Link between athletics and aristocracy - nudity allowed body to be seen; symposion importance to aristocrats and nudity in that; connection of religion to nudity so could be indicator of piety
Although female nudes remained taboo by Classical period, what meanings meant that exceptional cases of female nudity were made? (4)
Religion esp to do w fertility (Aph)
Magic
Eroticism
Courtesans
What 2 associations came with female nudity that kept it taboo?
Shame and societal fear
What does the term Realismus mean?
realistic and uncompromising subjects/forms but to an exaggerated extent
What is one distinct difference in the character of lower status group images compared to higher ones?
No lower status group depictions were connected with named individuals so didn’t function as portraits as such
What are ‘genre’ figures?
What are ‘grotesque’ figures?
Physically able but socially destitute.
Physically disabled or disfigured
How are grotesque figures often shown?
in the nude
Other than subject, what differentiates genre and grotesque figures?
Genre figures could be small and large scale sculpture whilst grotesques are exclusively small figurines.
What sub-group of depictions in genre figures are more variable and diverse than others in Classical and Hell. art?
Africans
When do depictions of Africans become initially popular in Greek art? In what form?
late Archaic P
Pottery paintings and cephaloform vases
How does Massgélia interpret the nudity of many figures of Africans sleeping? Interp of these sleeping Africans?
Nudity suggests absence of comfort or means to access bed/blanket and so figure is improvising in unusual environment and/or is of such low status cannot afford a bed etc
They are slaves wating to escort their masters home from a symposion, as suggested by assoc with wine and amphora
In what context were ‘grotesques’ produced for?
sympotic
What mental impairments were dwarfs thought to have also had in the classical lit?
abnormally poor memory
stupidity
addiction to sleep
Why would dwarves often be represented nude?
to expose the torsion of the body required by the dancing /performance activity they are often represented in + extension of limbs
What were the two types of hunchback figurines in Hellenistic art?
healthy
frail
What is the meaning of enlarged phalloi for incongruous bodies in hellenistic art (esp dwarves)? (3)
accentuates the shortness of the legs
indicates an ugliness
links between comedy and vulgarity
What was the tuck for luck dance? Meaning in art?
a form of dancing that involved the tucking of the penis and testicles through the legs so it could be seen from behind
The combination of exaggerated penis and dwarf figure appears to have had an apotropaic/talismanic significance
What appears to have been the main function of dwarf figurines/images?
apotropaic - protection against superstition. This is especially the case with the link between laughter and apotropaic value
What was the aesthetic appeal of deformed art subjects?
elite favour for exotica which relates to entertainment, especially in a setting in which the subject can be afforded - symposia
Why does Masséglia describe deformed bodies as ‘among the most powerful bodies in figurative art’?
their intention in generating strong viewer response, whether positive or negative
