The first person who compared painting and poetry with one another was a man of refined feeling, who became aware of a similar effect produced upon himself by both arts. He felt both represent what is absent as if it were present, and appearance as if it were reality; that both deceived, and that the…
Historic Articles by Authors
WHAT LIFE MEANS TO ME by Jack London
Introduction to “What Life Means to Me” by Jack London This page was updated March 29, 2025. In his powerful 1905 essay “What Life Means to Me,” Jack London offers a deeply personal account of his journey through America’s social hierarchy and his eventual embrace of socialism. London, already famous for works like “The Call…
COMMON-SENSE IN ART by Oscar Wilde
Oscar Wilde’s sardonic 1887 review of Collier’s ‘Manual of Oil Painting’ reveals his belief that art transcends technical reproduction