Art and Propaganda

During our class discussion, we talked about how there is a difference between propaganda and art. If I remember correctly, someone described propaganda to be something that influences how someone would normally feel. In that case, we could say that art that tries to make people feel a certain way (i.e. sad, mad, etc.) is also a type of propaganda. Dictionary.com defines propaganda as "information, ideas, or rumors deliberately spread widely to help or harm a person, group, movement, institution, nation, etc."

During World War II, there was a lot of propaganda being spread around both sides. For example, this is propaganda poster for the Allies. It features a very stereotyped "German" with a long nose and fish lips. He looks coldly on the scene of an innocent person being hanged. Surely, one can not argue that this was definitely aimed at influencing how someone viewed Germans and the Axis Powers. However, the first time I ever came across this image was when it was being reprinted and sold as a poster. It was a part of a set of WWII propaganda posters with others such as "Loose Lips Sink Ships" and "Buy War Bonds." In other words, people buy these posters to hang in their homes. I'm sure people go as far as collecting the originals. So, does this mean that these posters cease being propaganda and become art? After all, I'm sure these people aren't buying them because they believe what they say to be true (at least in today's interest.)

  

So, with time, did these images cease being propaganda and become art? Are they history? I am not sure whether art has to be created with intention or not, but if it doesn't, then it very well could be art. However, can something be propaganda and art at the same time?

Study Question 2

"What about things that cannot be created by craftsmen or by man, like, for example, a unicorn? What category does it fall into? Is art of a unicorn an imitation of an imitation or not?"

In my opinion, I think that the first person who conceived of a unicorn tapped into the world of forms. Then, it became depicted in stories and or art. Now, this is the part that I am slightly uncertain about; if people started putting unicorns on T-shirts and making them into stuffed animals, would the craftsmen who made them be making an imitation of an imitation? It's impossible to make a true unicorn, so would the craftsmen be aiming to create an ideal unicorn? In this case, I think that it could be argued that yes, the story of a unicorn might be less real and less useful than the stuffed animal unicorn, but wasn't it around first, and therefore, any "real" unicorns we see in our daily lives are imitations of an imitation.
Can we even apply what we know about the world of forms to things that do not exist, such as fictional characters? Does this fall into another category?

Study Question 1

"In the world of forms, the form of a couch is designated as “useful” and in our world, a couch we can use is “less useful.” Why is the idea of a couch useful rather than the actual object?"

On the board when we had the three forms of bed, the idea/form of the couch was designated as "useful," a physical couch we could use was designated as "less useful," and art of a couch was designated "less useful still." I do agree that the form of the couch is a good thing, because without the idea of it, we would have no couches, but aren't actual couches more useful? After all, a real couch, in my opinion, is infinitely more useful than the concept of one. You can't sit, sleep, relax, read, etc. on a concept. However, what I wonder is if couchmakers tap into the world of forms when they make a couch, or just copy the design of the couches we already have. If they are just copying a couch, doesn't the form of a couch lose its usefulness?

Philosophy Toolkit

This is not my first experience with the Philosophy Toolkit. What remains to be the most interesting part of the entire toolkit are the fallacies. It is amusing because many people use these informal fallacies and believe them to be truth. Ad populum is something I see so often. In the past, many people believed that slavery was alright because so many others thought it was okay, too.
Ad hominem is something we're seeing a lot these days because of the election that will occur later this year. Many people are disregarding the political opinions by of others by attacking them verbally. This also mixes in with ad populum, especially on certain cliquey websites. They will get in groups and attack and follow along with others, just because it seems like it's alright.

Response to TA's question 01

"My question is, what about inventors? The person who came up with the couch, wheel, table, iPod? Does an "inventor" as such even exist?"

I don't think in Plato would think that the inventor of any such object was truly the "inventor."  On page 25, Plato wrote, "here we have three sorts of couches, of which one exists in nature, and this we shall attribute...to the workmanship of god." He might argue that the concept of couch has always existed, regardless of whether the human mind thought of it or not. God, as many see it, is the creator of all and is all-knowing. So, the first person who invented a wheel might be the first human who made one, but God originally created the concept of the wheel - its true form - and any other wheel is an imitation of it. We can therefore argue that the idea of the iPod has always existed, along with the wheel, table, and every other object in existence. This also implies that there are a seemingly infinite amount of things that exist, but we do not know about them, at least yet.

Introduction

My name is Catherine Obrzut, and I am a sophomore at MCLA. I am an English major with a concentration in literature, and after here, I plan to get my Master's in Library Science. I'm taking many classes this semester and I work part time in the Financial Aid office. I like to sew and do so whenever I have free time. I sew things for gifts and for my own personal use. I'm currently making a pair of pants.  I enjoy sci-fi and fantasy, both in books and in media. I also am a huge fan of crime dramas and like to recite the intro the Law and Order: SVU.

I hope to get some insight about what makes art "art' this semester. I do not know much about the art world, so I hope this class will enlighten me and give me some new perspectives as well.