The Two Paths

Within John Ruskin’s Book “The Two Paths” he discusses many of his ideas, concerns and theories on art and art culture. I will cover but four of what I think to be the more interesting concepts. Balancing true representation of form and ‘abstract’ human expression in an artwork. The effect art has on a cultures behaviour and vice versa. The idea that the human hand will never be surpassed in its ability to create true art. And finally, I will discuss Ruskin’s position on the distinction between art for arts sake, or art for self-recognition and wealth.

Born in London, February 8, 1819, John Ruskin was destined to be either a man of God or a man of art and literature. His mother Margaret Cox was a devoted Christian who had dedicated her only child to God before Ruskin was even born. His first education was to be that of the bible, and due to his mother’s strict policy of being a Christian, he would end up learning it well. His father, though no less strict, was a highly cultured man. He was not only a collector of art, but also a lover and writer of poetry. This mix of strictness and culture, caused Ruskin’s upbringing to be a very successful one in which he learnt to write verse by the age of eight, began taking lessons from a

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Finally before I conclude I would like to make a note on the style of writing Ruskin chose. As I stated earlier Ruskin was influenced greatly by Turner and it can now be seen that Ruskin’s excessive enthusiasm for Turner’s pictures is based on an instinctive appreciation of their imaginative force, but his defence of Turner is argued on the grounds of their representational truth, their fidelity to the facts of nature. Although Ruskin suffered from a lot of mental illness throughout his life he was still able to write the most profound statements that often seem to encapsulate what I think to be the truth about art. I believe it to be wrong to make such a generalisation as Ruskin has done. One because it is shallow, and their work, though it may look good, have a nice aesthetic to it and be easy on the eye, will not have feeling, and I think this to be a major factor in art. It is my opinion that each side has its own qualities that quite plainly cannot be compared. In other words, a civilisation that is indeed civil does not always bear the creative passion of a mirrored culture, which is stricken with war and violence. Later however he goes on to contradict himself by stating that art can contain beauty without the symbolic use of nature, “ You have often to obtain beauty and display invention without direct representation of nature” (Ruskin, 1884, 41). I myself am most certainly at awe and admire any particular realistic reproduction of a landscape, or what ever the subject matter may be. Allot of his points, many of which I did not cover in this essay, are still valid in today’s society of not only art but life in general.

In conclusion “The Two Paths”, although not being one of Ruskin’s most well known books definitely has its strong points and I found it very enjoyable to read because, as noted before, of the technique in which it is written. I am of the opinion that a culture can be both creative and peaceful, and the two characteristics do not suffer from a Ying and Yang type relationship. Thus it is the paintings ability to create nostalgia that I truly enjoy and not the painting itself. This enables Ruskin to converse with the reader as if he were there with them. I appreciate the time and effort that went into creating such a work.

Approximate Word count = 2202
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)

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