Ruskin's Nature of Gothic
I used to view the Middle Ages as a blemish in human history, a blip between classical antiquity and the Renaissance. That placed me in line with that group of scholars that generally describes the medieval area as brutish, primitive, and unsophisticated. Western culture, and American culture in particular, is built on Greco-Roman philosophies and ideals. The influence of classical civilization is exerted in nearly all facets of our lives, from art and architecture to philosophy and government. Situated between Antiquity and the Renaissance, the Middle Ages is commonly the victim of prejudice, and to erase that prejudice and those misconceptions from the mind is to begin to understand and appreciate medieval art.
The word Gothic was originally used as a "term of unmitigated contempt"[1] by those who saw it as barbaric. Ruskin, however, defends this "savageness." He argues that while the style is savage "it is not true, that, for this reason, we are to condemn it, or despise."[2] Ruskin likens the style to nature, to the mountains, the landscape, to the rocks and the ledges and the valleys and the pastures. The wildness of Gothic architecture parallels the wild nature of the world itself.
Not only does Ruskin write about their physical characteristics, but he also attributes to them "moral elements."[3] Things like piety[4] are often associated with Gothic architecture. It is not any one of these qualities which makes something Gothic, but the unity of these elements makes the work "come together so as to have life."[5]
While I agree with many of the points Ruskin makes, I am averse to his loathing for classical architecture: "If, as in Greek work, all the capitals are alike, and all the mouldings unvaried, then the degradation is complete."[6] He also takes a stab at "that fallen Roman, in the utmost impotence of his luxury, and insolence of his guilt"[7] which comes off as mere bitterness. While I am overcoming my prejudice towards the Middle Ages, I'm certainly not losing any awe for the classical society after which the western world was modeled. I'm simply opening my eyes and seeing the beauty of all that is.
Notes
1. John Ruskin, "The Nature of Gothic," in Victorian Literature, ed. Jerome Bump (Austin: Jenn's Copy & Binding, 2006), 726.
2. Ibid., 726.
3. Ibid., 725.
4. Grace Glueck, "In Pointed Style: The Gothic Revival in America," in Victorian Literature, ed. Jerome Bump (Austin: Jenn's Copy & Binding, 2006), 719C.
5. Ruskin, 723.
6. Ibid., 729.
7. Ibid., 726.