Sunday, November 20, 2005
Math is Easy, Arts is Hard...
It's true, it's true.
Math is easy. The answers are pretty much definite. You calculate something and it gives you a number (which, for the most part, you'd know if you're in the right ballpark). Or you have to prove something (which, you know for sure if you've done what you're asked for or not). Or you state a definition/theorem/stuff they told you to remember. All the theory has their restrictions listed, so you know when you can and when you can't apply them. Most of the calculation involves the order of operations and some summation/integration techniques, which aren't difficult. Math requires the use of logic. It's either correct or incorrect, for the most part there is no middle ground.
Arts is hard. The answers are almost never definite, unless it's an economics question that asks you for some sort of calculation, in which case it's more like math than arts. You need to think of the course material covered, and see how it applies to the question at hand. You need to reflect, contemplate, and interpret the readings that you've done, and use them in your answers. No matter how much you've written down, you never know if you've covered all your points or if the marker agrees with your point of view. Arts is subjective, and very much prone to interpretation.
Fine arts is also difficult. I could not for the life of me compose a simple melody, very much less conceive in my mind an entire score consisting of melodies, accopaniment, and harmony. Also, one needs to see which combinations of instruments will work best for presenting the score; the possibilities are endless, there are no simple formulas, it is, for the lack of a better word, an art.
Funny how the word "art" is used to complement those at the highest level of achievement. The play of sports legends have often been referred to as "an art", you often hear something like " does this so well, it's an art". The highest academic designation thus far, Ph.D, is a doctorate in Philosophy, an Arts subject.
1 + 1 is easy. Writing a conclusion sentence for this blog entry is hard.
Math is easy. The answers are pretty much definite. You calculate something and it gives you a number (which, for the most part, you'd know if you're in the right ballpark). Or you have to prove something (which, you know for sure if you've done what you're asked for or not). Or you state a definition/theorem/stuff they told you to remember. All the theory has their restrictions listed, so you know when you can and when you can't apply them. Most of the calculation involves the order of operations and some summation/integration techniques, which aren't difficult. Math requires the use of logic. It's either correct or incorrect, for the most part there is no middle ground.
Arts is hard. The answers are almost never definite, unless it's an economics question that asks you for some sort of calculation, in which case it's more like math than arts. You need to think of the course material covered, and see how it applies to the question at hand. You need to reflect, contemplate, and interpret the readings that you've done, and use them in your answers. No matter how much you've written down, you never know if you've covered all your points or if the marker agrees with your point of view. Arts is subjective, and very much prone to interpretation.
Fine arts is also difficult. I could not for the life of me compose a simple melody, very much less conceive in my mind an entire score consisting of melodies, accopaniment, and harmony. Also, one needs to see which combinations of instruments will work best for presenting the score; the possibilities are endless, there are no simple formulas, it is, for the lack of a better word, an art.
Funny how the word "art" is used to complement those at the highest level of achievement. The play of sports legends have often been referred to as "an art", you often hear something like "
1 + 1 is easy. Writing a conclusion sentence for this blog entry is hard.
