The document summarizes an argument that art imitates life rather than life imitating art. It provides background on arguments and their purpose, and outlines the opposition's view that life imitates art. However, the author believes art imitates life because art is created to express or portray something in life initially. Several famous paintings are presented as examples of how art imitates specific life events or emotions. The conclusion restates that art cannot be created without first having inspiration from life, so life must occur before art can imitate it.

1. By Stephanie Palacios
English 102
Second Major Writing Assignment
Art Imitates Life

2. Arguments and What They Do
Not a yelling match between two or more opinions
•Should be fair and balanced
Should make your audience consider your argument, or re-assess
their position
•You do not have to change your opposition’s mind, but you should be able to
convince your audience that you make a valid argument
Makes a strong claim
•Aided by a lot of support

3. The Question: Does Life Imitate Art or
Does Art Imitate Life?
The Opposition
• Some, like Oscar Wilde,
believe that life imitates art
My Claim
• However, I believe that art
imitates life

4. The Opposition
• Art influences life because it influences people
to take action

5. Why the Opposition is Fallacious
• The opposition’s point of view, that life
imitates art, is fallacious because it must be
assumed that art is created for no initial
reason
• This means that art cannot serve any purpose
• Art like this does not exist; art always seeks to
express something
• *Note: We can be influenced by art, but the
art is initially created as an imitation of life

6. My Argument
• Art imitates life
• Art always serves a purpose; usually to get an
audience to feel an emotion which will
influence him or her to take action
• Even when art is “just for fun” or “just for
beauty” it is still imitating a part of life

7. Examples of Art Imitating Life
• The following slides are photos of art which
are among the “10 Most Famous Paintings of
All Time” according to touropia.com

8. Examples of Art Imitating Life
The Scream

9. Examples of Art Imitating Life
The Creation of
Adam

10. Examples of Art Imitating Life
The Last Supper

11. Examples of Art Imitating Life
Starry
Night

12. Examples of Art Imitating Life
Mona Lisa

13. Examples of Art Imitating Life
• The following examples of art are of non-
paintings

14. Examples of Art Imitating Life
Notre
Dame

15. Examples from V for Vendetta
• Mask represented a universal face, fear, power
and unification
• Created in response to life struggles

16. Real Life Use of the Guy Fawkes Mask
• 13 year old Meldoy wore
Guy Fawkes mask to show her
refusal to have her fingerprint
taken into school lunch system

17. Conclusion
• Art Imitates life
• Life cannot imitate art initially
• Life must occur first because that is where the
inspiration for art comes from
• If life imitated art, art could not be created for
any reason, and it could not express feelings
• Art can inspire us, but will have been initially
created as an imitation of life

18. Sources Cited
1. How to avoid arguments & how to deal with arguments [digital
image]. 2013 Aug 24 [cited 2014 Mar 10]. Available from:
http://www.turquoisemoon.co.uk/blog/how-to-avoid-arguments-
how-to-deal-with-arguments/
2. Thinking man statue [digital image]. 2012 Mar 27 [cited 2014
Mar 10] Available from: http://www.forbes.com/sites/work-in-
progress/2012/03/27/how-to-develop-5-critical-thinking-types/
3. CORBIS. Christopher Columbus meets the natives as he lands
in the New World [digital image]. 2010 Aug 03 [cited 2014 Mar
10]. Available from: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/steve-
jones/7923782/Human-population-our-brushes-with-
extinction.html

19. Sources Cited Continued
4. Oscar Wilde [digital image]. 2005 Aug 12 [cited
2014 Mar 10]. Available from:
http://www.cmgww.com/historic/wilde/photo6.htm
5. Vermeer J. The girl with a pearl earring [image].
2012 Aug 10 [cited 2014 Mar 10]. Available from:
http://www.biographyonline.net/artists/famous-
paintings-top-10.html
6. Higgs C. Young critic engaging with John
Lavery’s “Portrait of Anna Pavlova” (1911) [digital
image]. 2013 Feb 22 [cited 2014 Mar 10]. Available
from: http://christopherhiggs.tumblr.com/

20. Sources Cited Continued
7. Silva J. Photo of The Scream [digital image].
2014 Jan 21 [cited 2014 Mar 10]. Available from:
http://www.touropia.com/most-famous-paintings/
8. Tripleman. Photo of The Creation of Adam
[digital image]. 2014 Jan 21 [cited 2014 Mar 10].
Available from: http://www.touropia.com/most-
famous-paintings/
9. The Creation of Adam [image]. 2010 Mar 29
[cited 2014 Mar 10]. Available from:
http://www.openculture.com/2010/03/a_virtual_tour
_of_the_sistine_chapel.html

21. Sources Cited Continued
10. The Last Supper [digital image]. 2014 Jan 21
[cited 2014 Mar 10]. Available from:
http://www.touropia.com/most-famous-paintings/
11. Tasnaphun T. Photo of Starry Night [digital
image]. 2014 Jan 21 [cited 2014 Mar 10]. Available
from: http://www.touropia.com/most-famous-
paintings/
12. Mona Lisa [digital image]. 2010 Jun 8 [cited
2014 Mar 10]. Available from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Mona_Lisa.jpg

22. Sources Cited Continued
13. The Moldau album cover [image]. 2012 [cited 2014 Mar
10]. Available from: http://www.musicmotion.com/Music-
Appreciation/getting-to-know-classical-masterpieces-
smetanas-the-moldau.asp
14. Cummings R. Description of the Moldau. ALLMUSIC
[Internet]; date unknown [cited 2014 Mar 10].
http://www.allmusic.com/composition/vltava-the-moldau-
symphonic-poem-m%C3%A1-vlast-no-2-jb-1112-2-
mc0002450313
15. Kubina J. Lincoln memorial statue. 2014 [cited 2014 Mar
10]. Available from:
http://www.veteransmemorialstatues.com/2011/07/sculpture-
facts/

23. Sources Cited Continued
16. Thomas A. Notre Dame de Paris [image]. 2012 Mar 31 [cited 2014 Mar
10]. Available from:
http://www.wondermondo.com/Countries/E/France/IleDeFrance/NotreDamePa
ris.htm
17. V in V for Vendetta [digital image]. 2013 Jun 14 [cited 2014 Mar 10].
Available from: http://www.clydefitchreport.com/2013/06/the-dystopia-i-think-
is-better-than-1984/
18. Kirstie. Melody, 13, protesting the United Kingdom's policy of obtaining
biometric data from minors at school [image]. 2014 Feb 11 [cited 2014 Mar
10]. Available from: http://digitaljournal.com/news/world/13-year-old-defies-
big-brother-and-refuses-to-be-fingerprinted/article/370009
19. King J. 13-year-old defies ‘big brother’ and refuses to be fingerprinted.
Digital Journal [Internet]; 2014 Feb 11 [cited 2014 Feb 25]. Available from:
http://digitaljournal.com/news/world/13-year-old-defies-big-brother-and-
refuses-to-be-fingerprinted/article/370009