what do you mean by ekphrasis elaborate with one example

Ekphrasis is essentially a literary description of a work of art, like painting a picture with words. An artistic piece of work can be a song inspired by a short story, a painting inspired by a sculpture, a poem inspired by a painting, etc. The main appeal and challenge of an ekphrastic poem are in the limitations of poetry

as a form.

Full Answer

What is ekphrasis in art?

Ekphrasis is the use of vivid language to describe or respond to a work of visual art. Borrowed from the Greek term ékphrasis, or “description,” early ekphrasis was used as a vivid description of a thing. One of the earliest examples of ekphrasis was Homer’s description of the forging of the Shield of Achilles in the 18th chapter of The Iliad.

What is the subject of an ekphrastic poem?

The subject of the ekphrastic poem can be about an actual artwork ( actual ekphrasis) or a fictional object like Achilles' shield ( notional ekphrasis ). Sometimes the ekphrastic poem responds to a work that once existed but is now lost, destroyed, or far away ( unassessable actual ekphrasis ).

What is an example of ekphrasis in the Iliad?

For example, Book 18 of The Iliad (ca. 762 B.C.) includes a lengthy detailed visual description of the shield that Achilles carried. The author of The Iliad (said to be a blind poet known as Homer) never actually saw the shield. Ekphrasis in epic poetry usually described scenes and objects that were only imagined.

Where does the word ekphrastic come from?

The word comes from the Greek ἐκ ek and φράσις phrásis, 'out' and 'speak' respectively, and the verb ἐκφράζειν ekphrázein, 'to proclaim or call an inanimate object by name'. According to the Poetry Foundation, "an ekphrastic poem is a vivid description of a scene or, more commonly, a work of art."

What is ekphrasis and example?

Usually, ekphrastic poems are written about a painting, but they can also be based on a sculpture, an object, or even architecture. One of the earliest examples is in the Iliad, when Homer describes Achilles' shield. Another famous example is John Keats' poem “Ode on a Grecian Urn.”

What is meant by ekphrasis?

“Description” in Greek. An ekphrastic poem is a vivid description of a scene or, more commonly, a work of art. Through the imaginative act of narrating and reflecting on the “action” of a painting or sculpture, the poet may amplify and expand its meaning.

What does ekphrasis mean in poetry?

Ekphrastic poetry has come to be defined as poems written about works of art; however, in ancient. Greece, the term ekphrasis was applied to the skill of describing a thing with vivid detail. One of the. earliest examples of ekphrasis can be found in Homer's epic poem The Iliad, in which the speaker.

Why is ekphrasis used?

Ekphrastic poetry is a written form that highlights a visual work of art. “Ekphrastic” derives from the Greek word for description​​. Ancient Greeks used ekphrasis as a rhetorical exercise to verbalize the actions, descriptions, and significance of events, histories, and art.

How do you write ekphrasis?

As you begin to write your ekphrastic poems, consider the following approaches: Write about the scene or subject being depicted in the artwork. Write in the voice of a person or object shown in the work of art. Write about your experience of looking at the art.

Who was the first poet for ekphrasis?

The earliest and best known example of ekphrasis is the long description of the shield made by Hephaistos and given to Achilles by his mother Thetis. (The passage is found in Book 18 of the Iliad.)

Who invented ekphrasis?

Augustus and Agrippa (678–684)

How do you use ekphrasis in a sentence?

The messenger describes the banquet tent, in a detailed ekphrasis . The Renaissance and Baroque periods made much use of ekphrasis . Virtually any type of artistic medium may be the actor of, or subject of ekphrasis . Like the other occurrences of ekphrasis , these works of art describe multiple events.

Where does the term ekphrasis come from?

It should be no surprise, then, that the term ekphrasis derives from Greek, where it literally means "description" and was formed by combining the prefix ex- ("out") with the verb "phrazein" ("to point out or explain"). "Ekphrasis" first appeared in English in the early 18th century.

Is ekphrasis a literary device?

Ekphrasis is a literary device, a description of art which is so expressive that your reader can imagine it in detail. John Keats' famous "Ode on a Grecian Urn" is one well-known ekphrasis, a detailed reflection on a specific work of art.

Where does the term ekphrasis come from?

It should be no surprise, then, that the term ekphrasis derives from Greek, where it literally means "description" and was formed by combining the prefix ex- ("out") with the verb "phrazein" ("to point out or explain"). "Ekphrasis" first appeared in English in the early 18th century.

How do you use ekphrasis in a sentence?

The messenger describes the banquet tent, in a detailed ekphrasis . The Renaissance and Baroque periods made much use of ekphrasis . Virtually any type of artistic medium may be the actor of, or subject of ekphrasis . Like the other occurrences of ekphrasis , these works of art describe multiple events.

Who invented ekphrasis?

Augustus and Agrippa (678–684)

What is writing art called?

calligraphy, the art of beautiful handwriting. The term may derive from the Greek words for “beauty” (kallos) and “to write” (graphein).

Did you know?

Although "ekphrasis" (also spelled "ecphrasis") is a relatively new entry in our dictionary, the practice of using words to comment on a piece of visual art is an ancient one. One of the earliest and most commonly cited forms of ekphrasis occurs in The Iliad, when Homer provides a long and discursive account of the elaborate scenes embossed on the shield of Achilles. It should be no surprise, then, that the term ekphrasis derives from Greek, where it literally means "description" and was formed by combining the prefix ex- ("out") with the verb "phrazein" ("to point out or explain"). "Ekphrasis" first appeared in English in the early 18th century.

When is ekphrasis poetry workshop?

Recent Examples on the Web On Thursday, May 17, from 6:30 to 8 p.m., a workshop on ekphrasis poetry will teach how artwork can inspire a poem. — Carole Goldberg, courant.com, 2 May 2018 The performance was a kind of call and response, or ekphrasis, with lyrics and chords inspired by Lethem's prose. — Agatha French, latimes.com, 5 Feb. 2018

Where does the word "ekphrasis" come from?

It should be no surprise, then, that the term ekphrasis derives from Greek, where it literally means "description" and was formed by combining the prefix ex- ("out") with the verb "phrazein" ("to point out or explain"). "Ekphrasis" first appeared in English in the early 18th century.

What does ekphrasis mean in a novel?

The definition of ekphrasis has changed over time, but today we use it to mean “ The verbal representation of visual representation” (see James Heffernan, Museum of Words: The Poetics of Ekphrasis from Homer to Ashbery ( University of Chicago Press, 1993)).

What are some examples of ekphrases?

A good example is Victoria Chang’s “Edward Hopper Study: Hotel Room.”. The title alerts us to the fact that the poem attends to a work by the painter Edward Hopper.

What is an ekphrasis?

Basically, an ekphrasis is a literary description of art. Like other kinds of imagery, ekphrasis paints a picture with words. What makes it different from something like pictorialism is that the picture it paints is itself a picture: ekphrasis stages an encounter between representations in two mediums, one visual and one verbal.

What questions to ask when considering ekphrasis?

One question to ask when considering ekphrasis is this: Does it matter if the reader is familiar with the representation described? Consider, for example, Monica Youn’s Stealing the Scream.

What is the oldest example of a shield?

One of the oldest examples is Homer’s long description of Achilles’ shield in the Iliad. Throughout that ekphrasis, the poet emphasizes the fact that the images described are images on a shield, and even calls attention to the god Hephaistos’ act of making that shield.

Is ekphrasis part of the story?

In those cases, it’s important to remember that ekphrasis does not pause the story. It may halt the forward movement of the plot, giving the reader and/or characters a chance to process emotions or consider a different point of view, but that itself is an important part of the story.

Is the poem "That is all the artist left us with" ekphrastic?

We know the poem is ekphrastic when we get to this passage: “That is all the artist / left us with” – that makes it clear that the poet is engaging with an artistic representation.

What is an actual ekphrastic poem?

Actual ekphrasis. An actual ekphrastic poem is one that’s about something that really exists in the world, like “The Starry Night” or ‘ The Arnolfini Marriage.”. It is observable at the same time that one is reading the poem.

What is ekphrasis poetry?

Ekphrasis - Definition and Examples | Poem Analysis. Although ekphrastic poems are normally associated with painting, drawing, sculpture, etc., they might also be poems about songs for dances. The term comes from the Greek for “description.”. There are no rules to ekphrastic poetry.

What is the meaning of the poem Starry Night?

Starry Night by Anne Sexton. Starry Night by Anne Sexton is a beautiful poem in which Sexton taps into her own sorrow and struggles in order to depict Vincent van Gogh’s The Starry Night. She describes the panting emotionally and memorably. The night is described as a “rushing beast” and “great dragon.”.

What is the poem Ode on a Grecian Urn about?

‘ Ode on a Grecian Urn’ is one of the most famous ekphrastic poems. In it, Keats uses notational ekphrasis to addresses an imagined ancient vase. He describes what’s on the outside of the vase and alludes to what it might’ve been used for.

What is an example of notional ekphrasis?

One passage of The Iliad, in which the speaker describes Achilles shield, is often cited as an example. This dates back to 762 B.C and also proves that ekphrastic poems can be about things that the poet has imagined. They don’t have to be about real-life works of art. Achilles shield is an example of notional ekphrasis.

Why are ekphrastic poems important?

Ekphrastic poems are incredibly impactful when a poet wants to spend time focusing on one remarkable piece of art. They’re used to create a powerful experience for the reader. They’re introduced to the art, usually through the title or an epigraph, and immediately brought into the world of the artist and poet in the first lines.

What is the inspiration for Nighthawks Carson?

Nighthawks Carson takes inspiration from Edward Hopper’s best-known painting of the same name. In it, the viewer observes two men and one woman sitting in a restaurant through broad glass windows. The poet suggests in her poem that time is one of the most important factors in the poem.

Why do we use ekphrasis in literature?

Since the types of objects described in classical ekphrases often lack survivors to modern times, art historians have often been tempted to use descriptions in literature as sources for the appearance of actual Greek or Roman art, an approach full of risk. This is because ekphrasis typically contains an element of competition with the art it describes, aiming to demonstrate the superior ability of words to "paint a picture". Many subjects of ekphrasis are clearly imaginary, for example those of the epics, but with others it remains uncertain the extent to which they were, or were expected to be by early audiences, at all accurate.

What is ekphrasis in art?

Ekphrasis has been considered generally to be a rhetorical device in which one medium of art tries to relate to another medium by defining and describing its essence and form, and in doing so, relate more directly to the audience, through its illuminative liveliness. A descriptive work of prose or poetry, a film, ...

Where is ekphrasis found?

The fullest example of ekphrasis in antiquity can be found in Philostratus of Lemnos ' Eikones which describes 64 pictures in a Neapolitan villa. Ekphrasis is described in Aphthonius ' Progymnasmata, his textbook of style, and later classical literary and rhetorical textbooks, and with other classical literary techniques was keenly revived in the Renaissance.

What is an example of a storyteller?

One example is a painting of a sculpture: the painting is "telling the story of" the sculpture, and so becoming a storyteller, as well as a story (work of art) itself. Virtually any type of artistic medium may be the actor of, or subject of ekphrasis. One may not always be able, for example, to make an accurate sculpture ...

What is the meaning of the phrase "the presence that thus rose so strangely beside the waters"?

Ekphrasis. "The presence that thus rose so strangely beside the waters, is expressive of what in the ways of a thousand years men had come to desire. Hers is the head upon which all 'the ends of the world are come', and the eyelids are a little weary. It is a beauty wrought out from within upon the flesh, the deposit, little cell by cell, ...

Was ekphrasis practiced in the Middle Ages?

In the Middle Ages, ekphrasis was less often practiced, especially as regard s real objects, and historians of medieval art have complained that the accounts of monastic chronicles recording now vanished art concentrate on objects made from valuable materials or with the status of relics, and rarely give more than the cost and weight of objects, and perhaps a mention of the subject matter of the iconography .

Which Russian novelist used ekphrasis?

The Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoyevsky employed ekphrasis most notably in his novel The Idiot. In this novel, the protagonist, Prince Myshkin, sees a painting of a dead Christ in the house of Rogozhin that has a profound effect on him.

What is the subject of an ekphrastic poem?

The subject of the ekphrastic poem can be about an actual artwork ( actual ekphrasis) or a fictional object like Achilles' shield ( notional ekphrasis ).

What is the meaning of the word "ekphrastic"?

The term ekphrastic (also spelled ecphrastic) originates from a Greek expression for description. The earliest ekphrastic poems were vivid accounts of real or imagined scenes. Through effusive use of details, writers in ancient Greece aspired to transform the visual into the verbal. Later poets moved beyond description to reflect on deeper meanings. Today, the word ekphrastic can refer to any literary response to a non-literary work.

What is ekphrastic poetry?

Ekphrastic poetry explores art. Using a rhetorical device known as ekphrasis, the poet engages with a painting, drawing, sculpture, or other form of visual art. Poetry about music and dance might also be considered a type of ekphrastic writing. The term ekphrastic (also spelled ecphrastic) originates from a Greek expression for description.

What is the poem "Ode on a Grecian Urn" about?

In five rhyming stanzas, Keats' poem "Ode on a Grecian Urn" addresses an imagined version of an ancient vase. Typical of artifacts seen in the British Museum, the urn is embellished with musicians and dancing figures. It might have once held wine, or it could have served as a funerary urn. Instead of merely describing the urn, Keats speaks directly to the dancing figures:

Why are the figures on the urn hopeless?

The figures on the urn seem all the more hopeless because they're frozen on an artifact that is timeless. However, Keats' controversial lines — "Beauty is truth, truth beauty"— suggest a type of salvation. Beauty (visual art) is equated with truth.

What does Szymborska suggest about monkeys?

By introducing the student's confusion and the surreal exam, Szymborska suggests that the monkeys symbolize the hopelessness of the human condition. It doesn't matter whether the monkeys gaze out the window or face the room. Either way, they remain enslaved.

Why did epic poets use ekphrasis?

More than 2,000 years ago, epic poets used ekphrasis to help audiences visualize legendary battles. They created an enargia, or a vivid word painting. For example, Book 18 of The Iliad (ca. 762 B.C.) includes a lengthy detailed visual description of the shield that Achilles carried.

What Is an Ekphrastic Poem?

Ekphrasis is essentially a literary description of a work of art, like painting a picture with words. An artistic piece of work can be a song inspired by a short story, a painting inspired by a sculpture, a poem inspired by a painting, etc.

What Is the History of Ekphrasis?

One of the most famous examples of ekphrasis begins with Plato’s musings over form. In the Republic, Plato was both the originator of the term and the originator of the practice.

What Are Tips for Writing an Ekphrastic Poem?

The first and most obvious tip is that an ekphrastic poem must come from a place of heartfelt inspiration.