St George Cabinet by Philip Webb Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

St George Cabinet by Philip Webb - Essay Example Background of Webb and Morris The St George Cabinet was made with two individuals who worked together, one which focused on the architecture of the cabinet, named Philip Webb, and the other which included the paintings, known as William Morris. The scenes that are incorporated are from the life of the saint and are taken directly from Medieval style architecture and art. The concept which is associated in this piece is one which consists of the Victorian values of the time, specifically which both the artists had1. The idea of the values was based on the sense of morality toward Christianity and reverence toward the older styles of art work. Morris directly influenced this because of his strong association with the Church and the restoration of older Churches that he was continuously involved in. Webb followed this particular concept with the commercial architecture that he believed was taking away from the reverence of religion and morality of the time2. The concept of religion and morality which both represented not only was based on the restoration of religion in which both believed in. ... This was based on the pagan style initiatives which were initially a part of the Church and which were approached by bringing back the original expressions of religion. The approach to several of the works, specifically by Morris, was descriptive of these scenes, the actions of the saints, and the original stories which could be exhibited in terms of religion and ritual3. Techniques and Materials of St George Cabinet The materials that are used for the Saint George Cabinet consist of painted and gilded mahagony, pine and oak and copper mounts. The overview of this can be seen in figure 1. Fig 1: Saint George Cabinet The main concept with the materials was to use the natural elements that would best represent the cabinet, combined with using durable woods to the completion of the cabinet4. The materials which were used were specifically based on finding the natural woods that would hold in durability and strength, combined with finding the materials from easy to locate resources for t he finished product. This combined approach then allowed for the cabinet materials to work in the finished handicraft material5. The techniques that were used in the making of the cabinet and the design are also defined as rare for the time because of the approach which was taken with the shape and building of the cabinet. The architecture of the cabinet, while having a box like structure, also has the Medieval elements from the sides, specifically with the pointed sides to the cabinet. The horizontal look that is held on the stand is also different to the architecture and creates an appearance that was not as popular for the time. Instead, most were interested in the length – wise

Women Suffrage Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Women Suffrage - Research Paper Example This change was triggered by the alarming changes subsequent to the Great Depression. The Great Depression led to a fundamental change in how economies worked and challenged classical economic theories and their real life application. The increasing role of women was further enhanced by the implementation of the 19th amendment which led to greater importance of women in all fronts, leading, in turn, to increased involvement in education, military, public offices, technology and electoral processes. Women and Great Depression: The role of women during the Great Depression was in contrast to traditional modes of economic contribution. The traditional modes of contribution and work anticipate monetary rewards and compensation to justify effort, but for a significant period of time, women continued to work without expecting monetary rewards. Traditional societies viewed working outside home and serving the home at two distinct, non-overlapping activities, wherein, traditionally, men are associated with earning money by working outside the house, whereas women are expected to stay at home. During the Great Depression, economics, idealists and esteemed philosophers thought that women had to come out of their shell and take up responsibility to help the country out of an economic calamity of such magnitude. Women in the 1930s, time of the depression, had employed husbands who provided enough to help the family live on. There were times, however, where they would struggle to survive given the lack of resources at their disposal. The decade saw a study decrease in median income across all fronts leading to increased stress and survivability issues. Women and men experienced the Great Depression in different ways. Men considered themselves as breadwinners, hence when they lost their jobs; they considered themselves failures because they couldn’t provide their families with sufficient resources. Women, on the other hand, saw their significance at home increase as t hey juggled home and work responsibilities and started to play a role as breadwinners. It is interesting to note that no women lost her ‘job’ of working at home whereas their husbands struggled to earn money and find new sources of work. Challenging economic conditions challenged traditional gender roles and women slowly but surely started to move out of their role of staying at home. Women who were widowed or divorced, or single women, struggled to keep themselves afloat. They were truly living on the margins. The Great Depression is often associated with the struggling, unemployed man, however, women who were in a similar state of economic disaster, found themselves working it out on the sidelines on their own and trying to survive. Women who sought employment were often scorned as transgressors guilty of taking jobs away from deserving men. Many theorists and opinion leaders shared this view and when Norman Cousins noted that the gainfully employed number of women eq ualed the national unemployment total in 1939, he suggested that women should be fired, as they are not supposed to be working anyway, and men should be hired instead. Women were made a convenient scapegoat for the Great Depression. This was despite the fact that women had little options as they had to do something to ensure survival. Furthermore, the social segregation entrenched during those days made it difficult for men to take up jobs performed by women in any case. While men were concentrated in jobs involving heavy machinery, mining, etc. women were working in domains such as nursing, cleaning and clerical jobs. It is also essential to note that men dominated fields such as heavy industry and manufacturing were the hardest hit by the depression whereas women