Metamorphosis Of Narcissus Impact On Education

Think back to a class in elementary school where each student was given a different prompt and each was required to do a presentation in response to that prompt. Did any students stand in front of the class with a picture of the prompt given and say absolutely nothing about it? No. Most students gave a brief history, maybe stories about it, why it was made the way it was made, or even how it pertains to the classroom. Each student was presenting their topic with context to ensure every other student had a rounded understanding of the material. Presenting on a prompt with several different contexts is the key to understanding that prompt, similar to understanding a piece of artwork. The surreal painting of Metamorphosis of Narcissus proves that
Teachers can use this art in an educational context. The Greek myth itself can teach many messages, but so can the painting. Children can think about their own interpretations and what they learn from it. A lesson is simply remembering that what you do affects others. Narcissus only looked out for himself and did not care about others so he was punished. However, everyone makes mistakes and should be given another chance. The hand holding the egg with the flower can reflect many different circumstances. One is that Narcissus is being rebirthed; he is being given another fresh start to make things right. Another may be that life is delicate and we need to treat everything and everything with the utmost respect. Besides the man kneeling in the water and the hand, there are depictions of other objects throughout the painting such as women dancing in the background and a similar shaped object in the mountains. Students should be given the opportunity to express why Salvador Dali used them in Metamorphosis of Narcissus. Why did he paint mountains in the background? Why is there a checkboard with a statue in the middle? Why are there a group of people dancing? Why is there a skinny wolf like animal in the foreground? Even these questions are up for interpretation because each student may see each object as something different. There is a difference in viewpoints from person to person, but there are also different viewpoints according to where you are interpreting the piece of