Art iis a mysterious thing. Art tells stories. Art gives of misconceptions. Art gives off so many vibes. Its your job to pick which vibe to catch.
Now when you look at this piece of art, what do you see? Do you see two men admiring two women? Or do you see two men raping two women? When you read the title of the piece of art, what do you think the piece is going to consist of?
This piece depicts (mortal) Castor and (immortal) Pollux abducting Leucippus’s daughters, Phoebe and Hilania. Now to the eyes first glance, I see why some may believe the girls are getting raped or admired, but they are not. Despite the word “rape” being in the title, thats not exactly what was going on. In todays time, “rape” means forced to have sex, its something thats been taken from you. This piece of art shows two naked women and two clothed men so i can see why one would be confused, the title of the piece doesn't help. Once again, two naked women and two clothed men could be looked at as the men were just admiring the women.
This painting is from 1618. In 1618 the words that we use now aren’t the same words we used then. In 1618 words were even spelt different. In the 20th century, “rape” was really “tapered,” it comes from latin origin and it actually means “to snatch or kidnap.” When this painting was made, yes the women were naked but so were most women in paintings in that century. The men are grabbing the women which is where the “snatch” and “kidnap” comes in.
Now, giving the evidence that has been provided, yes your still entitled to your opinion, but, i hope you see the difference betweenthe truth and assumptions.