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Who Assassinated Holofernes?
The assassination of Holofernes is depicted in the Old Testament in the Book of Judith as an act of trust in God carried out through Judith. The Book of Judith tells the story of the Assyrians laying siege to the Israelites. The Israelites are afraid, while Judith, characterized as beautiful, chaste of full of trust in God, alone hatches a plan to settle the matter. She leaves with her maid Bethulia for Holofernes camp to ingratiate herself to him. He becomes drunk both by alcohol and her beauty. In his intoxicated state, he becomes her victim in his tent that night, as she decapitates him, causing the Assyrians to scatter in fear now that their leader has been killed. She returns to Israel and remains chaste. Two works of art that depict this story are Judith Slaying Holofernes by Artemisia Gentileschi (1614) and Franz Stucks Judith and Holorfernes (1927). Both works depict Judith in a violent, sensual waythe main difference beaing that whereas the Baroque artist Gentileschi shows Judith revealing only a modicum of bosom while decapitating Holofernes, Stuck shows Judith as completely nude wielding a sword about to do the slaying.
Gentileschi was a Baroque Italian artist, who painted during the time of the Churchs Counter-Reformation, an era in which the Roman Catholic Church was in an ideological and military battle with the Protestant Reformation. The Baroque movement was known for its dramatic characterization of people, themes, and events. Works of art during this period often reinforced Catholic notions. Gentileschis painting, which hangs in The Uffizi museum in Florence, Italy, shows the dramatic moment at which Judith killed the enemy of the Israelites.
https://www.uffizi.it/en/artworks/judith-beheading-holofernes
Stuck was a modern German artist who followed in style of Art Nouveau and the work of Gustave Klimt. He often depicted women in the nude to create sensual images, but his works are also more impressionistic than that of the realism...…women were taking on new personas in the 20th century to embody this spirit of the new woman of the age. Judith in Stucks painting would have been seen as echoing the spirit of the age of the New Fraua spirit in which women used their charms of seduction freely.
The value of these works to the current generation as well as to future generations may be that each represents a Biblical mystery from the perspective of a certain time and place. Gentileschi shows Judith from the perspective of the Counter-Reformation; Stuck shows her from the perspective of the new woman. Todays generation could use these images both to understand current social dynamics and how a religious theme transitioned into a social one over time. Future generations are likely to benefit from these works by looking at them to see how styles of art work have changed over the centuries while still using the same stories, only using those stories to…
Works Cited
Wade, Mara. "The Reception of Opitz's" Judith" During the Baroque." Daphnis 16.1(1987): 147.
West, Shearer. The Visual Arts in Germany, 1890-1940: Utopia and Despair (NewJersey: Rutgers University Press, 2001.
Protestant Reformation Calvin vs. Luther John Calvin and Martin Luther while both proponents of reform in the Catholic church, held distinctly different views of religious doctrine that profoundly influenced the religious landscape during the 16th century and encouraged citizens to take charge of their spirituality and salvation. Both religious leaders helped shape and influence the Reformation and formed the foundation for Episcopalian and Presbyterian beliefs today. The Protestant Reformation is often considered
Protestant Reformation occurred as a reaction to the increasing encroachment of the Catholic Church on the political, social, and economic affairs of Europeans. Although the Protestant Reformation had a strong theological and doctrinal component, it would evolve into a major turning point in history that transcended religion. The Protestant Reformation was essentially a protest made in order to reform the heart of Christianity. It began when Martin Luther nailed 95 theses,
Reformation Protestant Reformation For most of the 1000 years after the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the Catholic Church was the only centralized authority in Western Europe. While kingdoms rose and fell, the Church remained and was the only religious authority in Europe. But beginning in the 15th century, people began to question the authority of the Catholic Church and specifically the Pope. What followed was a turning point in the
Protestant Reformation Western civilization has thrived for centuries, with the combined power and influence of the State and the Catholic Church. History up to the 16th century had witnessed a flourishing society influenced and ultimately, governed, by the principles and tenets of Catholicism. Inevitably, the Catholic way of life is the social way of life during these times. But the Church's stronghold over the society had been plagued with numerous incidents
The sale provoked Martin Luther to write his famous 95 theses that signaled the start of the Protestant Reformation. ("Protestantism" 2006; "The Reformation" 2004) Even before the 16th century reform movement, several attempts had been made to challenge the authority of the Church but the dissent was successfully suppressed. However, by the 16th century, a number of political and social factors made the conditions in Europe ripe for the success
However, a large portion of Luther's Ninety Five Theses focused on theological issues ranging from a critique of Marianism to a rejection of the sacraments. The critique of Catholic ritual and theology was remarkable considering the scope of the Church's power over religious doctrine. Of course, Luther was excommunicated and began his own Christian sect that later blossomed into a diverse set of Protestant denominations. The consequences of the sixteenth