The Renaissance

            I chose to respond to question one.  The two statues are different but they are telling different parts of the same story.  Michelangelo’s David is very humanistic.  He resembles what the perfect man would look like. He is tall, broad and muscular which makes him appear perfect.  David also has a strong stance and this makes him look courageous and ready to fight.  This David, has his sling shot in his hand and over his shoulder and it is hard to notice when you first see the statue.  The look on David’s face is one of thought and concentration.  His brow is furrowed and the audience can see that he is in deep thought trying to figure out how to defeat Goliath.  It may even express concern that he may not succeed.  I agree with the statement that Michelangelo’s David is Apollonian classicism. Based on the observations I have previously stated, he fits this description.  I like the fact that the two statues represent different parts of the story, which makes their expressions and attitudes easier to understand.  

            Donatello’s David is clearly passionate individualism. This David’s pose comes across as cocky as he leans into the sword of Goliath.  He does not have the same masculinity as Michelangelo’s David because he is not as muscular and the shape of his form is almost feminine.  The long hair and the hat aid in the feminine look. Aside from the shape of his body the audience sees that underneath David’s left foot is the head of Goliath, which helps explain his cocky stance.  David, who is an untrained farm boy, has just faced the greatest Palestinian warrior.  David shot him with a sling shot and then used Goliath’s sword to cut off his head.  The Palestinian army agreed to stop fighting with the Israelites if their greatest warrior was defeated.  In this instance, David has a right to be cocky.  He can be prideful because he just saved his nation by using whit, not strength and skill.  Understanding the background of Donatello's statue helped me to see why he created David the way he did.  His attitude is appropriate for what he has just accomplished and he deserves glory for what he has done. 

            Although both of the statues are very different, they express the world view of the renaissance.  The statues portray unique emotions and ideas to the viewer but they both resemble man.  Humanism is expressed through both renditions of David.  During the renaissance, the focus shifted from a negative view on human kind to a positive outlook.  This reason can explain why artists of this time period spent so much time re-creating art that was centered on man.  Creativity came into play because man had no bounds and near the end of the renaissance artists realized that art had no limits and they could create whatever they wanted to create.