Architecture – Gothic and Renaissance: Passage 5

00:00 This passage is entitled Architecture: Gothic and Renaissance.

00:05 This is a humanities passage.

00:07 And one thing that we'll be doing is we'll be looking for how to distinguish aesthetic aspects of architecture, as opposed to structural things.

00:17 For architecture passages, you won't be wanting to examine whether buildings have aspects which are aesthetic, as opposed to be structural.

00:27 Sometimes you'll see things that fit both needs, such as arches.

00:32 Then we'll be looking for those comparisons across the ideas, perhaps between different time periods that things were built or across different styles within the same time period.

00:44 Lastly, a solid three dimensional reasoning and visualization skill set would be a plus for these types of passages.

00:51 In the first paragraph, the author discusses these things called shafts.

00:55 It's a little bit unclear what they are.

00:57 But if we need to understand them we can maybe use question context.

01:03 In order to solidify our understanding of what a shaft is, we maybe don't need all of the specific details just yet.

01:10 In the second paragraph, we see that the column is often employed in transitional and E. churches as a substitute for peers carrying arches.

01:19 Again, we don't know everything about what peers are just yet, but we know the context come back to if they are tested.

01:26 We go on to state in every period, small columns are freely used as ornamental features.

01:32 I thought that was just a pretty clear statement about what small columns are.

01:36 So those I do understand, and those I should be able to answer.

01:40 Paragraph three states, every column is divided naturally into three parts, its base or foot; its shaft which warns the main body; and its capital, or head.

01:51 I thought this just very neatly delineated exactly what column is and could be useful to come back to.

01:57 And then we discuss each of these components part of the base usually consisted of a flat stone.

02:04 And then I highlighted a few more instances where that discussion on the base was discussed further.

02:11 I've highlighted throughout in various portions, the different periods that are referred to just in case we're asking about a specific period of architecture.

02:20 The next paragraph states, the proportions of shafts varied extraordinarily; they were, as a rule, extremely slender when their purpose was purely decorative, and comparatively sturdy, when they really served the carry a weight.

02:33 Now, I really do get a greater understanding of what a shaft is.

02:38 In the final paragraph, we discuss the capital, which is one of the features which a student may make use of as an indication of date and style things.

02:47 This is one of those things that really gets into connections between ideas.

02:51 So I thought it was a great kind of litmus test for something I might come back to when trying to examine something that is important, something that is delineated of date and style.

03:02 I could come back to this discussion on capital.

03:05 Lastly, we are told that on top of the bell, which is discussed as being this part of the capital, is placed the abacus, a flat bottom block of stone upon the upper surface of which built superstructure, or is laid the beam or block which the column has to support.

03:23 With that, I think we're ready to go to the questions.