Please refer to Landscape of the Soul Class 11 English Notes and summary provided below. The following summary and solved questions have been designed as per the latest syllabus and books issued by CBSE, NCERT, and KVS. By going through and learning the below notes for Class 11 English you will be able to understand the entire chapter and easily solve questions in your exams. Also, refer to the Class 11 English Chapter Summary for all chapters in your textbooks.

Class 11 English Landscape of the Soul Summary and Questions

The following Landscape of the Soul Class 11 English Notes and questions answers will help you to easily learn the entire chapter. You will be able to solve all questions in upcoming Class 11 English exams and score better marks

Summary

A wonderful tale is told about the Chinese painter Wu daozi who lived in the 8th century. He was engaged by the Emperor to paint on the palace wall. It was the painter’s last painting. He hid his work behind a screen which only the Emperor could see. The emperor admired the scene of forests, mountains, waterfalls and clouds, humans on hilly paths and birds in the sky. In the cave at the foot of the mountain, the painter said, lived a spirit. He clapped his hand and the cave door opened. The inside was no less splendid. He entered the cave with the emperor following him. But before the emperor could move, the entrance to the cave closed. Even the painting on the wall also disappeared. The artist was never seen again.

Such stories are common in Chinese books written by great philosophers like Confucius and Zhuangzi. They reveal the spirit in which art was considered in ancient China. Contrast this story to a representative Western painting. A famous painter of Flanders wouldn’t draw the eye of a dragon he had painted. He had a fear that with open eyes, the dragon would fly out of the painting.

There is a third story of 15th century Antwerp. A blacksmith called Quinten Metsys fell in love with a painter’s daughter. The father rejected his suit because of his law profession. So Quinten one day got into the studio and painted a fly on his latest canvas. It looked so realistic that the painter tried to drive it away. Then he realised what had happened. He accepted Quinten as his apprentice. Quinten married his beloved and became one of the most famous painters of his age.

The two stories show what each form of art tried to achieve. The European art excelled in creating perfect likeness: In Asia, the art presented the inner life and spirit.
In the Chinese story, the emperor admires the outer appearance, but the artist reveals to him the true meaning of his work. The Emperor may rule over the conquered land but only the artist knows the way within, the mysterious works of the universe.

A classical Chinese landscape, unlike Western painting, does not present an actual view. The European painter wants you to look at the landscape exactly as he saw it from a particular angle. The Chinese landscape is not ‘realistic’. You can enter it from any point. He only creates a path for your eyes to travel up and down in a leisurely fashion. This method is illustrated best in the case of a scroll. As you roll the painting scroll up to move on to another painting, you find a dimension of time in it. The viewer has to travel through the painting along with the painter. The viewer’s participation is both physical and mental. The reason is that the landscape is an Inner one, a spiritual one.

This concept is expressed as shanshui. Which literally means mountain water. The two words together represent the landscape, two complementary poles. The vertical mountain is Yang. Which is stable and warm. The horizontal water isyin—resting on the earth, moist and cool. It is feminine while Yangismasculine. This is the basic notion of daoism.

In between the receptive feminine and the active Yang—the two sources of universal energy—Is a third element, the middle empty space, where their interaction takes place. It is essential. Hence, the Chinese landscape leaves white, unpainted space. This is also the field where man plays a key role. He becomes the medium of communication between poles of the universe. He is the eye of the landscape.

Important Points

• This extract highlights the basics of art—Chinese and European. These present a study in contrast.
• The Chinese paintings are not as realistic and perfect as European paintings.
• A classical Chinese landscape does not produce the actual view. It can be entered from any point. The viewer is free to travel up and down. He has to participate in it both physically and mentally. The scenery is an inner one.
• An emperor could rule over his big conquered territory but only an artist could enter it.
• In European art, the viewer has to borrow the eye of the painter to look at a landscape. The scene creates an illusion of likeness with reality. This Idea has been illustrated through stories.
• The lesson also explains the word landscape and the concept of shanshui. It is the Daoist view. Land stands for vertical and Masculine Mountain. Scape represents water that flows horizontally and is feminine in character.
• They have to interact although they are like two poles of the universe. The man who acts as their connector is the eye of the landscape.

Short Questions and Answers

Question. Contrast Wu Dao Zi’s story with another famous painter’s story. What is that story?
Answer: Daozi’s story is in contrast to another story. Another famous painter drew the picture of a dragon, but without the eyes. He had a fear that if he painted the eyes, the dragon would then fly out of the painting.

Question. What does the Chinese story about the Emperor and Wu Daoziillustrate?
Answer: The Chinese story deals with the magic of art and skill of the artist. Wu Daozi created wonderful landscapes on the palace walls. The emperor admired only the outer looks of the work. Only the painter knew how to enter the mysterious world of art. An artist alone understands the mysterious works of the universe.

Question. What isshanshui? How does it express the concept of the word ‘landscape?
Answer: Shanshuiis a concept about the mystery and origin of the universe. The landscape literally means ‘mountain water’. These two elements are like two poles and a source of energy. The mountain is vertical and male; the water is horizontal and female. These are also called Yang and yin. They are complementary. Their interaction keeps the world going.

Question. How do Yang and yin illustrate the story of the origin of the human race?
Answer: Yang and yin are a part of the Daoist view of the world. These are two poles which complement each other in producing energy and this universe. Yang island, or solid vertical mountain. Yin is water that flows horizontally. The union of male and female energy has created this universe.

Question. What does the European story about Quinten Metsys illustrate?
Answer: The story about Quinten Metsys illustrates the illusion of reality created by European paintings. It deals with outer appearances. While Asian art tries to capture the spirit or inner life.

Question. Bring out, in brief, the contrast between European art and Chinese art.
Answer: The European or western landscape reproduces the actual view. It creates the illusion of reality. The painter wants the viewers to see his work through his eyes and from a specific angle. The Chinese landscape is vague. It calls upon the viewers to use their eyes as well as imagination to see its inner beauty.

Question. Which story from Flanders, Europe, is most representative of Western painting?
Answer: The story from Flanders is about a famous painter who would not draw the eyes of a dragon he had painted. He had a fear that with eyes to see, the dragon would fly out of the painting.

Question. What is the unique feature of the horizontal scroll? How can it be appreciated?
Answer: The unique feature of Chinese horizontal scroll is that it does not give us an integrated view of the scene. There is a gap between one picture and another. It leaves scope for the viewer to use his mind and imagination. The landscape is not realistic but an inner one.

Question. What is the role of man in the space between Heaven and Earth?
Answer: Yang or the male vertical mountain represents Heaven. Yin is the feminine aspect of energy. Water lies flat on the Earth. The space between Heaven and Earth is connected to Man. He becomes a means of communication between the two.

Question. What does the wonderful expression ‘the eye of the landscape’, as suggested by Francois Cheng, mean?
Answer: Francois Cheng, in his wonderful expression ‘the eye of the landscape’, refers to the importance of Man, and the fundamental role he plays. Man is not frightened of high mountains as depicted in a natural landscape. He links the two poles and he alone has got the eye to understand the landscape.

Question. Which story from Flanders, Europe, is most representative of Western painting?
Answer: The story from Flanders is about a famous painter who would not draw the eyes of a dragon he had painted. He had a fear that with eyes to see, the dragon would fly out of the painting.

Question. How did Quinten Metsys impress the painter and achieved his goal?
Answer: Quinten Metsys, a master blacksmith, fell in love with a painter’s daughter. But his suit was rejected on grounds of his low vocation. One day he entered the studio of the painter secretly and painted a fly on the blank canvas which was spread there. The painter took it for a real one and tried to flip it away. He was greatly impressed by the skill of the blacksmith.

Question. What is the third element, represents by the ‘Middle Void’ in Chinese landscape?
Answer: The masculine energy of Yang and the female energy of Yin are incomplete without each other. But their interaction takes place in the ‘middle void’, or blank space left in a Chinese landscape. Nothing can happen without the combination of both aspects of energy.

Question.What wonderful tale is told about the Chinese painter Wu daozi?
Answer: The Chinese Emperor commissioned the painter Wu daozi, to decorate the palace walls with landscape paintings. He did his job very well but worked behind a curtain. Only the king could see and admire it. But the painter got into a cave, no less beautiful. The gate closed before the king could enter it. All the paintings also disappeared along with their maker.

Question. What idea about art did the story of Wu daozi convey?
Answer: The Chinese story conveys the idea that the Emperor could only rule over his territory, and not understand the spirit of art. Only the artist knows the way within. He alone can enter the spirit of the universe.

Question. What did the Chinese philosophers try to achieve through their story books?
Answer: The two Chinese philosophers Confucius and included many stories in their books. They meant to guide their disciples in the right direction. Secondly, the stories reveal the spirit in which art was considered in ancient China.

Question. Explain the terms ‘illusionistic likeness’, ‘figurative painting’ and ‘delicate realism’.
Answer: The word ‘illusionistic’ means creating a sort of illusion or false impression. European art tries to create the illusion of an actual view. ‘Figurative’ also has something to do with ‘figure’ or the actual shape of a thing. The word delicate means were subtle or fine. Art reproduces not an exact view of reality, but only a semblance of it.

Question. What is the unique feature of the horizontal scroll? How can it be appreciated?
Answer: The unique feature of Chinese horizontal scroll is that it does not give us an integrated view of the scene. There is a gap between one picture and another. It leaves scope for the viewer to use his mind and imagination. The landscape is not realistic but an inner one.

Long Questions and Answers

Question. How does the author contrast the Chinese view of Art with the Western concept of painting? Which one do you find easy to understand and admire?
Answer: A classical Chinese landscape does not stick very close to reality. It leaves enough scope for the viewer to use his imagination. The painting can be looked at from any angle and from any viewpoint. One need not see it through the eyes of the painter. The scroll on which the artist paints has white, blank spaces left after every painting. It gives freedom to the viewer to travel up and down. It captures the essence of the inner life.
A European or Western painting, on the other hand, is realistic. The painter wants you to look at it exactly as he had seen it. From a particular angle. It creates an illusion of delicate realism. The story of Quinten in the 15th century illustrates this point clearly. He entered a painter’s studio slyly and painted a fly on the artist’s blank canvas. The artist mistook it for a real fly and tried to drive it away. That story is representative of Western painting.

Question. Write a note on the concept of Shanshui. How does it illustrate the Daoist view of the universe?
Answer: A Chinese landscape goes beyond the outward appearance of an object. it represents inner life and spirit. This Daoist view of the universe is expressed through the concept of Shanshui.
The word Shanshui literally means ‘mountain water’ or ‘landscape’. Mountain and water are the two complementary poles of the earth. The mountain is Yang, a vertical and warm object reaching out to Heaven. It represents masculine energy. The water is the female aspect of energy. She rests on the earth, damp and cool. Yang is active, Yin is receptive. Both interact to create the world.

Question. What are Nek Chand’s unique achievement and gift to the world? How did he get international recognition?
Answer: The India-born and altogether untrained artist Nek Chand developed the concept of ‘outsider art’. He created a paradise using waste material at Chandigarh. He cut and cleared the rocky place and created his dream. This drew the attention of the world. His art is the art of an untrained visionary. It is said to be the art of those who have ‘no right’ to be called artists because they have received no formal training. But sometimes such artists show remarkable talent and insight. Nek Chand’s creation is known as the ‘Rock Garden’.
The Swiss Commission organised a European exhibition in 2005 on Nek Chand’s works of art. It was shown in various other European countries. Thus Nek Chand by virtue of his untutored talent won international recognition.

Question. What wonderful tale is told about Wu Daozi? What light does it throw on the Chinese landscape?
Answer: In China, we come across strange tales about art and painting. These reveal the spirit of Chinese art. One such wonderful tale is told about the painter Wu Daozi of the 8th century. He was engaged by the emperor to decorate the palace walls. Daozi worked behind a curtain. He allowed only the emperor to see the landscapes he was painting. The king admired the beautiful trees and mountains drawn by the artist. Then he saw a cave in the painting and asked its meaning. The artist said that a spirit lived in the cave. He clapped his hands and the cave opened. Wu Daoziinvited the king to enter it with him. But the king was left wonderstruck while the artist entered the cave. The Emperor was left behind. The cave door closed and the artist disappeared. As if by magic the whole wall painting also disappeared.
This story conveys the idea that only an artist understands true art, not the rulers. He alone knows the true meaning of his work.