Download or read book INTERPRETING CULTURAL SYMBOLS written by Kathleen Ashley and published by . This book was released on 1990 with total page 253 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Symbols in Arts Religion and Culture written by Farrin Chwalkowski and published by Cambridge Scholars Publishing. This book was released on 2016-12-14 with total page 620 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We are a product of nature. Every single cell of our body is made of, and depends, on nature. Our inner soul is heavily influenced by nature. We feel sad if the sun is not shining for a few days, and feel pleasure when drawn to the wonder of flowers and uplifted by the song of birds. We came from nature; we are part of nature. In short, we are nature. Nature has been an intimate part of the human experience from the earliest times. Different religions and cultures, from all corners of the world, have honoured and worshipped nature in art, ritual and literature in their own unique ways. This book shows how we learn about our own human nature, our own sense of identity and how we fit into the larger scheme of life and spirit when we come to better understand how our human ancestors, through art, symbol and myth, expressed their relationship with the natural world.
Download or read book Introduction to Art Design Context and Meaning written by Pamela Sachant and published by Good Press. This book was released on 2023-11-27 with total page 614 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Introduction to Art: Design, Context, and Meaning offers a deep insight and comprehension of the world of Art. Contents: What is Art? The Structure of Art Significance of Materials Used in Art Describing Art - Formal Analysis, Types, and Styles of Art Meaning in Art - Socio-Cultural Contexts, Symbolism, and Iconography Connecting Art to Our Lives Form in Architecture Art and Identity Art and Power Art and Ritual Life - Symbolism of Space and Ritual Objects, Mortality, and Immortality Art and Ethics
Download or read book Symbol and Interpretation written by D.M. Rasmussen and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 120 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For the past four or five years much of my thinking has centered up on the relationship of symbolic forms to philosophic imagination and interpretation. As one whose own philosophic speculations began at. the end of a cultural epoch under methodologies dominated either by neo-Kantianism or schools of logical empiricism the symbol as a prod uct of a cultural imagination has been diminished; it has been neces sary for those who wanted to preserve the symbol to find appropriate philosophical methodologies to do so. In the following chapters we shall attempt to show, through a consideration of a series of recent interpretations of the symbol, as well as through constructive argu ment, that the symbol ought to be considered as a linguistic form in the sense that it constitutes a special language with its own rubrics and properties. There are two special considerations to be taken ac count of in this argument; first, the definition of the symbol, and sec ond, the interpretation of the symbol. Although we shall refrain from defining the symbol explicitly at this point let it suffice to state that our definition of the symbol is more aesthetic than logical (in the technical sense of formal logic ), more cultural than individual, more imaginative than scientific. The symbol in our view is somewhere at the center of culture, the well-spring which testifies to the human imagination in its poetic, psychic, religious, social and political forms.
Download or read book The Interpretation of Cultures written by Clifford Geertz and published by Basic Books. This book was released on 2017-08-15 with total page 484 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: One of the twentieth century's most influential books, this classic work of anthropology offers a groundbreaking exploration of what culture is With The Interpretation of Cultures, the distinguished anthropologist Clifford Geertz developed the concept of thick description, and in so doing, he virtually rewrote the rules of his field. Culture, Geertz argues, does not drive human behavior. Rather, it is a web of symbols that can help us better understand what that behavior means. A thick description explains not only the behavior, but the context in which it occurs, and to describe something thickly, Geertz argues, is the fundamental role of the anthropologist. Named one of the 100 most important books published since World War II by the Times Literary Supplement, The Interpretation of Cultures transformed how we think about others' cultures and our own. This definitive edition, with a foreword by Robert Darnton, remains an essential book for anthropologists, historians, and anyone else seeking to better understand human cultures.
Download or read book Symbols in Art written by Matthew Wilson and published by National Geographic Books. This book was released on 2020-10-13 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Thoroughly user-friendly and covering a broad historical sweep, this book is a reference guide to fifty of the most frequently occurring symbols in global art history. Iconography, or the study of symbols—be they animals, artifacts, plants, geometric shapes, or gestures—is an essential aspect of interpreting art. One of the most consistent features of human society throughout time has been the use of visual symbols, which often act as substitutions for the written word, crossing dialects and borders and uniting understandings of the world through a shared language. Incorporating and analyzing a wealth of cultures, Symbols in Art serves as a reference guide to fifty of the most frequently occurring symbols in global art history from 2300 BCE to the present day, exploring their subtle implications and covert meanings. Entries devoted to specific symbols expose nuances of meaning and historical use, from easily identifiable symbols across the globe to those used to speak to specific cultural groups. This book exposes such intriguing correspondences as the symbolism of grapevines in a fifteenth-century painting by Giovanni Bellini compared to the images in Yinka Shonibare’s Last Supper. Complete with a user-friendly glossary of symbols and a well-selected array of illustrations, this book illuminates common and thought-provoking symbols in art across history and the globe, functioning as an indispensable tool for interpretation.
Download or read book Significations written by Charles H. Long and published by Augsburg Fortress Publishing. This book was released on 1986 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Interpreting the Symbols and Types written by Kevin J. Conner and published by Rich Brott. This book was released on 1992 with total page 220 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book by Kevin Conner undertakes to interpret signs, symbols, and types that he discovers beneath the surface in biblical text.
Download or read book Shared Symbols Contested Meanings written by Loretta Fowler and published by Cornell University Press. This book was released on 1987 with total page 324 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Fort Belknap reservation in Montana is home to both the Gros Ventre and Assiniboine Indian tribes. The two thousand inhabitants of the reservation recognize an array of symbols--political, ritual, and sacred--which have meaning and emotional impact for all; yet there is sharp disagreement between the two tribes and among the various age groups about the interpretation of these symbols. Anthropologist Loretta Fowler here examines the history and culture of the Gros Ventres over two centuries, seeking to discover why the residents of Fort Belknap ascribe different and often opposing meanings to their shared cultural symbols and how these differences have influenced Gros Ventre identity.
Download or read book Literary Symbolism written by Maurice Beebe and published by . This book was released on 2011-05-01 with total page 190 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Clashing Symbols written by Michael Paul Gallagher and published by Paulist Press. This book was released on 2003 with total page 212 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This new edition provides a guide to the relationship between faith and culture. Providing an introduction to all the major figures, issues and debates, this guide is useful for students and those wishing to unlock the realities of contemporary culture.
Download or read book Echoes from the Past written by Nyathi, Pathisa and published by AmaGugu Publishers. This book was released on 2017-08-08 with total page 99 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A meaningful and sustainable interpretation of decorative symbols found on Zimbabwe's items of material culture among the various ethnic groups is one that recognizes their fundamental cosmologies, world-views, beliefs, axiologies and epistemologies relating to nature, the universe, interpersonal and inter-group relations and, above all, the critical goals that a community seeks to attain. Where there is a community there must, of necessity, be communication channels that ensure social cohesion and commitment to one vision and mission. Geometric decorative symbols, which are the subject of this book, belong to the visual arts, a genre that communicates fundamental messages effortlessly and beautifully! Aesthetics, cosmology and axiology combine within the context of a functional object and effectively express a community's total culture. At one time long ago, functionality and aesthetics were Siamese twins, intricately woven into one. However, over time resident meanings and messages were lost while aesthetic traditions,on account of their appeal and allure,continued, albeit limping on one leg, without their original partner-the underlying message being conveyed for posterity. This book seeks to capture the lost messages that are resident in the decorative symbols, apparently all of which carry the same meaning-one of CONTINUITY. Diversity of expression does not take away Africa's main preoccupation which is ensuring the continuity of the natural environment on the one hand and the family lineage, community and society on the other.
Download or read book Symbol and Interpretation written by David M. Rasmussen and published by Springer. This book was released on 1974-01-01 with total page 101 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For the past four or five years much of my thinking has centered up on the relationship of symbolic forms to philosophic imagination ,and interpretation. As one whose own philosophic speculations began at. the end of a cultural epoch under methodologies dominated either by neo-Kantianism or schools of logical empiricism the symbol as a prod uct of a cultural imagination has been diminished; it has been neces sary for those who wanted to preserve the symbol to find appropriate philosophical methodologies to do so. In the following chapters we shall attempt to show, through a consideration of a series of recent interpretations of the symbol, as well as through constructive argu ment, that the symbol ought to be considered as a linguistic form in the sense that it constitutes a special language with its own rubrics and properties. There are two special considerations to be taken ac count of in this argument; first, the definition of the symbol, and sec ond, the interpretation of the symbol. Although we shall refrain from defining the symbol explicitly at this point let it suffice to state that our definition of the symbol is more aesthetic than logical (in the technical sense of formal logic), more cultural than individual, more imaginative than scientific. The symbol in our view is somewhere at the center of culture, the well-spring which testifies to the human imagination in its poetic, . psychic, religious, social and political forms.
Download or read book The Meanings of Things written by I. Hodder and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-11-12 with total page 295 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This unique and fascinating book concentrates on the varying roles and functions that material culture may play in almost all aspects of the social fabric of a given culture. The contributors, from Africa, Australia and Papua New Guinea, India, South America, the USA, and both Eastern and Western Europe, provide a rich variety of views and experience in a worldwide perspective. Several of the authors focus on essential points of principle and methodology that must be carefully considered before any particular approach to material culture is adopted. One of the many fundamental questions posed in the book is whether or not all material culture is equivalent to documents which can be 'read' and interpreted by the outside observer. If it is, what is the nature of the 'messages' or meanings conveyed in this way? The book also questions the extent to which acceptance, and subsequent diffusion, of a religious belief or symbol may be qualified by the status of the individuals concerned in transmitting the innovation, as well as by the stratification of the society involved. Several authors deal with 'works of art' and the most effective means of reaching an understanding of their past significance. In some chapters semiotics is seen as the most appropriate technique to apply to the decoding of the assumed rules and grammars of material culture expression.
Download or read book The Complete Illustrated Encyclopedia of Symbols Signs Dream Interpretation written by Mark O'Connell and published by . This book was released on 2006 with total page 512 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Every symbol carries an elemental power that transcends boundaries and holds significance for many cultures. This beautiful, comprehensive book describes, discusses and illustrates thousands of these fascinating visual elements and assesses their relevance in language, art, literature, mythology, magic, religion and psychology. It also makes us more aware of the way signs and symbols are a subconscious language that we are at times unaware of when used by advertising and art, or even in our own doodlings or body language. The same fluidity that can be found I n the interpretation of signs and symbols can also be seen in the interpretation of dreams. Each dream has a particular significance for the dreamer, and similar content will have a totally different meaning depending on who is dreaming the dream. In the second part of this book, how we dream and show we interpret dreams is analyzed as a way of accessing our subconscious fears, desires and preoccupations. This unparalleled volume gives a wealth of information and cultural background to the primal metaphors that are part of humanitys universal, but ultimately personal, language, and begins a voyage of discovery into the importance of symbolism and dreams. Lavishly illustrated with over 2000 specially commissioned illustrations, fine art paintings and evocative photography, this book contains a vast visual resource of inspirational imagery as well as erudite and informative text. Book jacket.
Download or read book New Mythologies in Design and Culture written by Rebecca Houze and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2016-05-19 with total page 281 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Taking as its point of departure Roland Barthes' classic series of essays, Mythologies, Rebecca Houze presents an exploration of signs and symbols in the visual landscape of postmodernity. In nine chapters Houze considers a range of contemporary phenomena, from the history of sustainability to the meaning of sports and children's building toys. Among the ubiquitous global trademarks she examines are BP, McDonald's, and Nike. What do these icons say to us today? What political and ideological messages are hidden beneath their surfaces? Taking the idea of myth in its broadest sense, the individual case studies employ a variety of analytic methods derived from linguistics, psychoanalysis, anthropology, sociology, and art history. In their eclecticism of approach they demonstrate the interdisciplinarity of design history and design studies. Just as Barthes' meditations on culture concentrated on his native France, New Mythologies is rooted in the author's experience of living and teaching in the United States. Houze's reflections encompass both contemporary American popular culture and the history of American industry, with reference to such foundational figures as Thomas Jefferson and Walt Disney. The collection provides a point of entry into today's complex postmodern or post-postmodern world, and suggests some ways of thinking about its meanings, and the lessons we might learn from it.
Download or read book Dictionary of Symbolism written by Hans Biedermann and published by Penguin. This book was released on 1994-01-01 with total page 481 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This encyclopedic guide explores the rich and varied meanings of more than 2,000 symbols—from amethyst to Zodiac.
