Discourse on Caravaggio I first encountered this work of art when I was in middle school, where I was double enrolled in a local community college so I could fill both high school credits than university ones. I was taking the humanities class Renassaince: The Age of Reason when my professor showed us this piece and asked us what we had seen. The answers were mostly obvious; we see a man who recently beheaded another. However, we all missed the biblical context of the painting; this is a representation of David and Goliath. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay This piece is called David with the Head of Goliath and was painted by the incredibly influential painter Caravaggio in the early 1600s. He completed this work and sent it to the papal court in an attempt to ask for forgiveness; earlier in the year Caravaggio had been accused of murder and had been forced to flee from Rome to Malta. To truly explore the dynamics and meaning of the painting, I think we need to delve more into Caravaggio's story. He was born with the name "Michelangelo Merisi", but changed his name to that of his hometown, Caravaggio, to avoid confusion with the great sculptor and painter Michelangelo. By the age of 11, the bubonic plague had taken both of Caravaggio's parents, leaving him an orphan in Milan. Fortunately, the painter Simone Peterzano took him on as an apprentice, where he learned the basics and intricacies of the art over the next four years. Once he reached the angst of adolescence, Caravaggio left and joined a street gang made up of both swordsmen and painters. . Their motto was “without hope, without fear”. Caravaggio was a man of many vices; he was no stranger to drinking and gambling, and often tried to start fights in the streets, in one case even seriously injuring a police officer and being forced to flee. He made do with other starving artists by accepting low-end commissions of simple exhibitions, such as portraits or still lifes. Once some of his works caught on, the Catholic cardinal welcomed him and commissioned him to create works of art involving biblical passages. Many of his most famous works were created here, such as The Death of a Virgin and The Taking of Christ. For a time he prospered and made a respectable living; his place within the palace had protected him from any legal issues. Caravaggio was famous for painting realistic art; he preferred to observe and base his works on nature, rather than paint an ideal. As such, he often used as models those he found on the streets of Rome; however, people outside the streets of Rome were often homeless, prostitutes, beggars, and the sick. For this reason, many of his works were controversial, because he essentially portrayed saintly figures as humble mere mortals. His works are indicative of how messed up and twisted he was; the details are graphic and raw, without leaving out flaws or gory details. His works disturb and intrigue audiences due to the shock factor; no other artist would have had the courage to do what he did, for fear of public protest. However, Caravaggio's life was characterized by problems. Blessed with a short temper and access to alcohol, Caravaggio once again tried to start a fight, but this time it ended in the other man's murder. Now, this is a crime that cannot be forgiven the Cardinal; as such, Caravaggio was forced to flee to Malta and go into hiding. The reason why David with the head of Goliath hit me was because Caravaggio actually depicted himself as a beheaded Goliath. The painting itself has a.