More Than a Soldier
More Than a Soldier
Although my knowledge of
her life is little, Joan of Arc's relief of Orléans was one of my favorite events in her life. I stumbled upon several paintings depicting
her in battle and triumphantly reliving the town from the English siege. This painting, done by Scherrer in 1870, is a
depiction of her that I am particularly fond of. This painting, unlike some others, shows Joan of Arc in a non combative role entering the
city. While Joan did fight alongside her
soldiers, she was much more than just a warrior. The painting shows Joan leading her army into the city, which indicates the inspiring
role that she had amongst her soldiers. In
addition, the townspeople in the painting also seem to be cheering and praising
her, another indication of the hope that she inspired. By illuminating Joan in the painting Scherer shed
light on the divinity that she felt, which was elaborated on in the Zophy text
book. Another symbol of hope in this
painting is Joan of Arc's battle standard.
The flag that she holds, which I have come to find out through looking
around the internet, was something she brought into battle. The standard served
as a symbol of the centralized location of her army in a conflict. One site I looked at said that on several
occasions when her army was losing ground she would run forward and plant her
standard on the front lines and inspire her army to win the fight. I am not sure how reputable the source is,
but I like to think it's true!
Although my knowledge of
her life is little, Joan of Arc's relief of Orléans was one of my favorite events in her life. I stumbled upon several paintings depicting
her in battle and triumphantly reliving the town from the English siege. This painting, done by Scherrer in 1870, is a
depiction of her that I am particularly fond of. This painting, unlike some others, shows Joan of Arc in a non combative role entering the
city. While Joan did fight alongside her
soldiers, she was much more than just a warrior. The painting shows Joan leading her army into the city, which indicates the inspiring
role that she had amongst her soldiers. In
addition, the townspeople in the painting also seem to be cheering and praising
her, another indication of the hope that she inspired. By illuminating Joan in the painting Scherer shed
light on the divinity that she felt, which was elaborated on in the Zophy text
book. Another symbol of hope in this
painting is Joan of Arc's battle standard.
The flag that she holds, which I have come to find out through looking
around the internet, was something she brought into battle. The standard served
as a symbol of the centralized location of her army in a conflict. One site I looked at said that on several
occasions when her army was losing ground she would run forward and plant her
standard on the front lines and inspire her army to win the fight. I am not sure how reputable the source is,
but I like to think it's true!
So we managed to pick the same thing to focus on, that's actually really funny because I wrote my whole piece up before looking at anyone else's. I really like the piece of art that you chose because you are certainly correct in your statement that Joan brought more to the table than just her warrior abilities. She had the ability to rally her soldiers as well as the commoners, which is seen in the painting by the cheering crowd. She actually carried her standard everywhere, including when she helped to make sure that Charles VII was crowned. At the coronation ceremony, she stood with her standard, even though the religious leaders did not particularly like it.
ReplyDeleteNot only do i agree with the both your guy's observations but i wonder what makes her so different from the others? She must have not been the only female to ever made such an inpact on a group of soldiers expecially men. She clearly does not look manly in this photo or disgusing to be a man therefore i wonder how it was so easy for the men to allow her to led them into victory? What are your guys intake about that?
ReplyDeleteOne thing is for sure: there was a lot of confidence in Joan. There have been some other women who fought and led historically, though it is an exception to the rule. Joan used her connection with the heavens in way that inspired everyone to believe there was something special about her leadership; interesting that generally women are seen to have more mystical connections with God.
ReplyDeleteRe visuals, any age can create a visual. Generally they reflect that ages' stereotypes and biases. One of the commonalities of history is that powerful women are not necessarily shown; many images of her are as a demure woman. That is not historically accurate however. In this image however she is somewhat manly--for instance, she wears armor instead of a dress, she sits like a man on a horse, and she holds her banner high. Even here hair her is short. In this picture, though it is not historical, it does attempt to show here within the realm of history, as Mitch pointed out.