Raphael, Saint George Fighting the Dragon, 1503-5

When I sit at my desk and prepare to write an entry for the Art History blog, I pull up the image of the piece I am to write on, and stare at it for a while. This takes between five to ten minutes. Normally I would then begin some research on the artist and the work itself to be able to address it formally. While I did look up the story of Saint George, I researched nothing else. I chose to write about this painting because I feel it represent part of me in this moment of time. For Saint George, the dragon represented Satan. He had come to slay the dragon, not only to save the princess, but also to free the city, which this dragon terrorized, feeding on its livestock.

For me, I see myself as the knight, coming to the rescue to save myself, because I also represent the city. The dragon stands for all the bad habits I have accumulated. I used to always be on time with my work, but over the last semester I feel I have sunken into a daze. Some call it Senioritis, but I think that’s too easy of a diagnosis. I can say that I do feel awful for my lateness when it comes to teachers - mainly because I respect them and because my step-father once told me “not doing your homework is like a slap in the face to your teachers.”

Now other than one instance in middle school, I would never want to do such a thing. Now that college only draws nearer, I have embarked on a quest, one that would improve who I am as a person in preparation for the future. My goals are to become better with time management and deadlines, because whether its for Painting honors or Chinese II, I struggle with the word deadline. So with that, I am off to vanquish such a terrible beasts that reside within me. Hopefully I make it out alive and that this will be my last late assignment.