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Movement and the Dark |
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written
by sariah / 10.24.2005 |
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Part 1: |
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Motion is a reoccurring theme in Lawrence’s romanticized and embellished descriptions of the Etruscan tombs. For instance, when he writes about the Tomb of Hunting and Fishing, his selection of word details-- “a naked man, shadowy but still distinct, is beautifully and cleanly diving into the sea”, “blue-green sea with a silhouette surface that ripples all around the room” and “a man with a sling is taking aim at the birds which rise scattering this way and that” –depict the sensation of motion that he sees within the paintings. While peering through the protective glass door at these very same scenes, they appear frozen to me, like single, unmoving frames from a stopped reel of film. However, reading Lawrence’s writings while viewing the Etruscan Tombs gives a much different effect. It is as if the reel has begun to turn and the figures gradually launch into motion. This effect emphasizes how much Lawrence uses his writing to animate what he has seen. He wants to share his perceptions with his readers, so we will have a sense of who he is and the vigor he values. To this end, he also frequently withdraws solely from describing the tombs, and instead, adds a bit of conjecture in order to emphasize the energy he sees in the paintings: “sense of vigorous strong-bodied liveliness characteristic of the Etruscans”, “whose life, in these tombs, is certainly fresh and cleanly vivid”, and “the curves of their limbs show pure pleasure in life”.
Reading past the descriptions of the tomb walls, Lawrence outlines his interpretation of ancient beliefs. Beginning with the premise that man’s goal in life is to accumulate vitality through “vivid attention and subtlety and exerting all his strength “, he concludes that the amassing of this vitality leads towards “kings who are gods by vividness, because they have gathered into themselves core after core of vital potency from the universe”. Lawrence writes that these kings are able to demystify the processes of life and death, and become “life-bringers” and “death-guides”. Through knowledge about vitality, these men are better able to understand the duality of life and death, “leading ahead in the dark, and coming out in the day”. They guide the transitions for the immortal soul, which is stored in death and can re-emerge in life- “in death it does not disappear, but is stored in the egg, or in the jar, or even in the tree which brings forth again”.
Through his writing, Lawrence’s descriptions of the Etruscan Tomb paintings demonstrate his attempts to use attention and observation to accumulate vitality. By doing so, he hopes to gain the insight necessary to become a “life bringer” and “death-guide” for himself and his readers. By visiting this ancient site with the knowledge of his impending death, Lawrence is also seeking to gain a better understanding of the fate of man’s soul after death. He concludes that his soul is immortal, and that his death is a way of keeping fundamental balance in the universe. By viewing himself as immortal in part, and also as an integral component of larger universe, Lawrence is able to face death with less anxiety and more acceptance.
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Part 2: |
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When I think back to Lawrence’s writing from Tarquinia, my mind fills an amalgam of earthy paintings, vibrant dancers, regal feasters and Lawrence’s own musings on the soul’s immortality. However, as a foil to all these lofty thoughts, Lawrence talks about a young German man he meets on the second day who believes “nothing amounts to anything”. This man seems to embody the dullness of spirit that Lawrence hopes to avoid. Despite his multiple experiences visiting the Etruscan Tombs and in-depth archeological knowledge, the German man doesn’t ascribe a further meaning to any of the inscriptions or figures. He understands the Tombs at their face value, without attempting to interpret any details past their obvious meaning. At one point Lawrence writes “He is a scientist, and when he does not want a thing to have a meaning it is, ipso facto, meaningless”. Lawrence treats this man with paternal pity, blaming the man’s disinterest on his youth and post-war childhood environment. Yet, despite his derogatory descriptions, Lawrence cannot help but look for some of the vitality in the German man that he sees in the Etruscan paintings. By continually questioning the German on the definition and symbolism of the tombs, the contrast between Lawrence’s complex interpretations of the Etruscans and the German man’s refusal to interpret, make this Tarquinian image dominant in Lawrence’s writing.
Light plays a central role in the way Lawrence experiences the tombs. It is easy to imagine him descending into the underground, holding a sturdy lantern aloft in order to light his way. Once inside of the chamber, Lawrence moves the lantern around in order to view all of the paintings, and by doing so, the figures on each wall emerge at the edge of the illumination. As the light source moves and the light from the flame flickers, the movement of the light may have inspired Lawrence’s description of the vitality in the Etruscan paintings.
Similarly, light plays a major role in the way I experienced the Etruscan Tombs. Moving down the wooden stairs towards the death chamber below, the daylight through the entryway slowly dissipates in the rocky tunnel. Upon reaching the bottom of the flight, none of the paintings are visible through the protective glass due to the opaque darkness. Illuminating the room involves pressing down on a round, plastic button besides the window, which immediately brightens the room completely. After a few minutes, the timed light generator unexpectedly shuts off, instantly veiling the entire room in darkness. It is the surprise moment of looking into a void of blackness, where there were vivid paintings just moments before, that is my dominant image from Tarquinia. The startle of this darkness helps me to recall the feel of the tombs and focus my attention when I switch the light on again.
I use contrast to learn and remember in many instances. Inside of Rome’s piazzas, it is the “out-of-place” objects that trigger me to remember- the enormous bathtub fountains in the square behind the Campo de Fiori and the obelisk in the Piazza Navona, both so incongruent with the more subtle details of the cobblestone streets and ocher housing façade. Across from Bernini’s Ecstasy of St. Teresa, it is the gruesome wax portrait of the dead St.Teresa that makes the beauty of the sculpture so memorable. So too, in the Etruscan Tombs, it is the experience of complete darkness, in contrast to the lighted, “lively” paintings, that help me preserve the colorful and energetic images in my mind.
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