Sociology Commons^™

The Sword In The Stone: The Arts As Harbingers Of Social Change, Raymond L. Forbes

All Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Artists have been often been criticized by their scientific brethren for a lack of perceived current utility in their work. One potentially useful response to the issue of present value is through the use of historical analysis of art as a means for anticipating major social transformations. The thesis of this article is that Art, besides being representative of the Zeitgeist or spirit of its time, may well be an effective progenitor of coming significant social upheavals. The paper employs as a methodology comparison of historical waves of social change with pre-period artistic expression. Additionally, the legend of King Arthur’s …