Abstract: The Formal Art Analysis Assignment began with a slow-looking exercise where a work of art was to be intensely examined for all its details in the span of 40 minutes. Then the following essay should first carefully describe the attributes of the art piece, following with a personal analysis of it. The artwork which I chose to analyze in my essay was “The Death of Socrates” by Jacques Louis David, 1787. This assignment helped me enhance strategies for reading, drafting and editing, and develop and engage in collaborative and social aspects of writing.

Maxim Zorkin

ENGL 21001

Professor Carpenter 

4/8/25

Final Draft: Formal Art Analysis 

“The Death of Socrates”, made by Jacques Louis David in 1787, is an oil painting found in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. It is roughly 7 by 3 feet in size, and depicts the final moments of the Greek philosopher Socrates who was punished with death for impiety. The style of the painting is Neoclassical and depicts a proud and defiant Socrates willfully taking a cup of poisonous hemlock among a small crowd of despairing disciples. The scene takes place in a dark room of stone bricks, presumably a dungeon, with a single window behind the view of the scene, in the upper left corner of a supposed wall standing behind the viewer, illuminating the room with sunlight. In the middle of the room is a single bed, with its left side facing the viewer. On it sits Socrates, robed in white and facing the audience with his body, sits upon with shackles tapering around it, and a tall metal stand with an oil lamp standing behind Socrates. His left leg touches the ground and the other is being moved off of the bed, as if he is about to stand up to drink the poison. In front of the bed, beside the left of Socrates is a stone seat, and on it a sitting man in red robes placing his hand on Socrates’ leg, looking up at him as if to reason with him. On the stone seat is an etched image of a bird with the name of the artist “Jacques Louis David”. Further left of this stone seat is another man in a robe of deeper red, his back facing us and handing Socrates the cup of poison with his right hand. He is turning away with his other hand on the bridge of his nose and his left foot is poised to move clearly indicating his unwillingness to witness the scene. Socrates turns with his head to the right to face a group of grieving disciples at the right corner of the painting, with his finger raised upwards as he reaches for the cup with his right hand. The group at the right of Socrates is expressing the most grief out of all other subjects in the painting, striking dramatic poses of sorrow with one figure in red robes at the very right appearing to faint. At the foot of the bed is another stone seat, and on it is an old man in white robes bent downwards in a melancholy state, with a pen, scroll, and open vial of ink lying on the ground beside him. At the left end of the wall being faced is the exit, a hallway leading to a set of stairs climbing leftwards. One figure in blue robes rests his head and arms on the walls of the hallway as another expression of grief. Three distant figures can be seen leaving on these stairs, with one waiving towards the viewer. 

A common pattern that the ordinary viewer will find between Neoclassical paintings, especially of French origin is often the repetitive style they all share. Most of the time, these paintings will offer little to distinguish themselves from others making it difficult to identify which work belongs to which artist at a glance. In the neoclassical art gallery at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, there were dozens of paintings that appeared strikingly similar to The Death of Socrates, of which stood out to me mostly because I had recognized it. But the likeness these paintings share is no accident. Jacques Louis David, like many French artists of the late 18th century, debuted their works of art at the Salon of Paris, the most prestigious art exhibition organization in Europe. Works of art made at the time, Neoclassical paintings were all heavily expected to maintain a traditional style and convey traditional motifs and morals. The highly dense quantity of Greek mythological, Christian, and historical themes found among Neoclassical paintings can be largely attributed to these expectations. A painting by John Singer Sargent of Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau brought immense outrage when it appeared in the Salon of 1884 due to the revealing manner of dress the subject was wearing. The artistic choices and decisions painters and sculptors wished to express were greatly restricted for approval of the wealthy spectators of the Paris Salons, and the case is no different for The Death of Socrates by Jacques Louis David, helping the painting receive positive acclaim during its appearance in the Salon of 1787. His previous work of art, “The Oath of the Horatii”, was heavily criticized for its “garish” colors. In light of these oppressive restrictions, artists who wished to succeed followed a de-facto set of guidelines to appease their viewers, whereas symbolism and other motifs were scaled down to size in order to maintain the traditional style. The meaning and symbolism behind The Death of Socrates respectively can also be observed in these reduced details.   

One detail that is important to the painting’s meaning is the choice of color among the robes of the subjects. All figures in the scene are wearing matte yet colorful robes while Socrates and the old man at the foot of the bed are the only ones wearing white. The colorful arrangement of the robes on the disciples could reflect the strong emotions they are experiencing, while the white robes could indicate that the two main figures are experiencing this scene differently from the rest of the crowd. Despite the two wearing white reflecting a shared understanding of this situation, Socrates and the old man seem to be the opposites of each other. While Socrates’ body appears as stoic and active, the old man is sitting silently in melancholy as the scene unfolds. The two figures clearly have an important relationship in the painting, which begins to unfold as it becomes clear as to who the old man is. The writing tools and utensils besides the old man indicate that he was writing or recording something, but stops abruptly as Socrates is about to die. There is a particular historical figure who is accredited with the preservation of Socrates’ history which is the Greek philosopher Plato. This relationship becomes more obvious with the specific importance placed in the two figures. This composition almost suggests that the reaction of the disciples amongst Socrates, who plead to him to renounce his beliefs is unreasonable while Socrates and Plato are the virtuous ones, with Socrates unwilling to abandon his morals and philosophies for his life and Plato being sorrowful yet understanding of the choice to stand by his beliefs. The painting is almost a commentary on stoicism and virtue, depicting a man of wisdom refusing to renounce his teachings despite being threatened with death. It also demonstrates what the artist believes to be the wrong reaction, with the disciples of Socrates who are pleading with him to abandon his teachings, attributing their inauthentic emotional states with varying colors. Out of all subjects, Plato has the most interesting reaction. Despite his clearly unhappy state, he makes peace with Socrates’ decision and quietly awaits his demise, attributing a certain wisdom on par with Socrates. This behavior may reflect an understanding of Plato that in light of Socrates’ death, he has managed to preserve him in writing, and therefore can rest as Socrates willingly accepts the punishment his society has given him.