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Essay / The use of propaganda in ancient works of art:
The following ancient works of art can all be seen to function in part as propaganda: The Victory Stele of Naram-Sin (Mesopotamia , 2254-2218 BCE), the Lapith and Centaur metopes in the Parthenon (Classical Greece, 447-438 BCE), and Athena fighting Alkyoneos at the altar of Zeus (Hellenistic Greece, 175 BCE) . These pieces function as propaganda in various ways, all using literal or symbolic interpretations relating to concepts such as political power and struggle. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get an original essayPropaganda in art can be defined as art intended to promote or disseminate a certain statement, often political. The Mesopotamian victory stele of Naram-Sin certainly serves to make a statement. This ancient stele is intended to represent a war victory: Naram-Sin, great-great-grandson of Sargon, defeated a mountain population in Mesopotamia. It is interesting to note that this work of art does not use the traditional registers common to the art of the period. Instead, we see Naram-Sin's soldiers lining up the mountains, creating a sense of register-like "levels", as well as some depth. These soldiers are all looking towards Naram-Sin, who is on top of the mountains. He's taller than everyone else - hierarchical scale going - and a bit more detailed in his body and weapons. He is also idealized, as are his warriors: would all these men look so stoic and well-groomed during battle? The answer is definitely no. Naram-Sin is at the top in every sense of the word, represented through these symbolisms and by literally being at the top. He wears his horns, a symbol of divinity. The suns, divine representations, are above, guiding Naram-Sin: he is victorious and thereby rises into the divine kingdom. We can also see that the fallen mountain men are all below soldiers (again, in every sense of the word). They are defeated, falling into all sorts of painful and distorted movements, still curled up and begging for Naram-Sin. Meanwhile, Naram-Sin's army remains in perfect working order. The images and smaller-scale details together bring us to one conclusion: King Naram-Sin is to be feared and followed. This art sends a bold message. Outside the Parthenon in Classical Greece, marble metopes featured high-relief depictions of the Lapith people and fighting centaurs. We discovered the Greek tale as part of our lessons: the Lapithe people generously invite beastly centaurs, half-horse, half-human, to a huge wedding celebration which they are delighted to organize. The centaurs of course end up trying to escape with the Lapith women, and the Lapith men fight the centaurs, represented in the metopes. The details of the centaurs and Lapith men, particularly in their silhouette and stance, are incredible and give us an idea of the tension between the two sides. In the metope we focused on in class, the centaur appears victorious against his fallen Lapith. In other metopes we see Lapiths and Centaurs fighting. We believe that these metopes will ultimately project Greek strength and superiority. Centaurs are "monsters", said to resemble the Greeks' enemies, the Persians, whom they also considered barbarians and associated with chaos. These metopes represent both scenes from historical Greek myths (which were..