University Art History Project: An Analysis of Rousseau's 'The Dream'

This project provides an in-depth analysis of Henri Rousseau's painting, "The Dream." It examines the artwork's style, categorized as Primitivism, and its subject matter, which depicts a woman in a dreamlike jungle setting. The project explores the painting's meaning, including its potential interpretation as a retelling of the temptation of Eve, and discusses the artist's use of vibrant colors and dreamlike elements. Furthermore, the analysis offers a contemporary interpretation of the painting, suggesting a focus on gender equality by adapting the figure in the painting. The project also addresses the challenges encountered during the research, such as finding modern interpretations, and concludes with a reflection on the painting's significance and enduring appeal. The project draws on various sources to support its arguments and provides a detailed understanding of Rousseau's masterpiece.

Running head: “THE DREAM” BY ROUSSEAU
AN ANALYSIS OF THE PAINTING “THE DREAM” BY ROUSSEAU
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author’s Note:

1“THE DREAM” BY ROUSSEAU
Introduction
“The Dream” (1910) or “Le Songe or Rêve exotique” was the last completed painting of
Henri Rousseau and is widely considered as his masterpiece because of the visual appeal and
also the ideas that the concerned painting conveys1. More importantly, this particular oil-on-
canvas painting of Rousseau was initially exhibited at the Salon des Indépendants in France and
presently it is being exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art, New York City2. However, at the
same time it needs to be said that this particular painting received a substantial amount of
negative criticism during its first exhibition and the critic Guillaume Apollinaire described it as a
painting which “radiates beauty, that is indisputable. I believe nobody will laugh this year”3. This
tableau vivant work seeks to challenge the traditions of gender roles by depicting a boy in a
semi-nude stance to mimic the one which is being represented by the lady in Rousseau’s “The
Dream”.
Analysis of “The Dream” in terms of style, subject matter and meaning
Rousseau had created this oil-on-canvas painting in the Primitivism style of painting
wherein it is seen that special attention as well as detail had been given to the nature which in the
background (Refer to Appendix 1). More importantly, this 6' 8½" x 9' 9½" (204.5 x 298.5 cm)
painting forms an integral part of the series of Jungle Painting which was created by Rousseau
and is often considered as one of the most important naturalistic paintings of the 20th century
because of the beauty and the fine detail with which nature had been painted by the concerned
1. Schneider, Manfred. "The Dream of Transparency: Aquinas, Rousseau, Sartre." In Transparency, Society and
Subjectivity, pp. 85-104. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, 2018.
2 Moma.org. "Henri Rousseau. The Dream. 1910 | Moma". 2020. The Museum Of Modern Art.
https://www.moma.org/collection/works/79277
3 Gottlieb, Anthony. The dream of enlightenment: The rise of modern philosophy. WW Norton & Company, 2016.

2“THE DREAM” BY ROUSSEAU
painter4. In this particular painting, Rousseau had tried to show his mistress taking a nap in the
midst of nature and she is finally being awakened by the pink-bellied snake slither. Furthermore,
the different animals of the jungle are being enamored by the beauty of the nude lady and are
thereby drawing near her5. Moreover, to match the beauty of the divine lady, Rousseau had
painted the lotus flower, the landscape of the jungle along with the different plants and animals
in bright vibrant colors. The snake charmer in the background of the painting who is barely
visible often considered to be a representation of Satan who is there to corrupt the natural beauty
as well as the purity of Eve in the pseudo-Paradise portrayed by Rousseau in the painting6.
Changes in the Painting and its relevancy to the contemporary culture
The painting under discussion here had undergone a substantial amount of change in
terms of its interpretation in the recent years in synchronicity with the changing perceptions of
the people regarding the meaning or the theme of the concerned painting. In this relation, it needs
to be said that I have tried to give a new interpretation to the painting by replacing the figure of
the lady in the painting with a boy so as to highlight the idea of gender equality. Furthermore,
this had been seen to give the concerned painting a modern outlook and for making it focus on
the aspect of gender equality which as a matter of fact is an important concept from the
perspective of the contemporary culture wherein it is seen that people from all three genders are
fighting for equality. Thus, the adaption of the painting created by me by replacing the figure of
the lady with a boy tries to show that both the men and the women are equal and thus they should
not be fighting for the purpose of holding a greater amount of power and influence within the
societal framework.
4 Scott, Otto. Rousseau and Romanticism. Routledge, 2017.
5 Swain, Virginia E. Grotesque figures: Baudelaire, Rousseau, and the aesthetics of modernity. JHU Press, 2020.
6 Schneider, Manfred. "The Dream of Transparency: Aquinas, Rousseau, Sartre." In Transparency, Society and
Subjectivity, pp. 85-104. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, 2018.

3“THE DREAM” BY ROUSSEAU
Challenges and new insights
The most important challenge that I encountered while completing this assignment was
related to finding out the modern interpretation of the painting which I had selected for analysis
in this paper. For instance, the majority of the critics or the scholars have merely highlighted the
meaning of the painting rather than offering any interpretation of the same in the particular
context of the modern-day setting. Thus, I had to understand the meaning of the painting and
then place the same within the modern-day setting. However, at the same time I would say that
this in turn helped me to understand the meaning of the painting in a better manner while helping
me to appreciate the beauty of the same. For instance, I realized the fact that the painting of
Rousseau can be used for highlighting the aspect of gender quality by replacing the figure of the
lady in the painting with that of a male individual so as to give the concerned painting a
contemporary outlook. Furthermore, I think that the quality of the modified version of this
painting created by me could have been improved even further had I got the opportunity to visit a
wood or forest and taken the picture there.
Conclusion
To conclude, Rousseau’s “The Dream” is an important Primitivism style painting which
while offering a portrayal of his mistress also attempts to retell the story of Satan’s temptation of
Eve as well. More importantly, the painter had taken the help of the vibrant colors, dream like
setting and others to not only enhance the quality of the painting but also on to convey the idea to
the audiences that the entire incident is taking place in the dream of the audiences.

4“THE DREAM” BY ROUSSEAU
References
Gottlieb, Anthony. The dream of enlightenment: The rise of modern philosophy. WW Norton &
Company, 2016.
Moma.org. "Henri Rousseau. The Dream. 1910 | Moma". 2020. The Museum Of Modern Art.
https://www.moma.org/collection/works/79277.
Nettleton, Claire. "Conclusion: Henri Rousseau and Synthetic Naïveté." In The Artist as Animal
in Nineteenth-Century French Literature, pp. 231-238. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, 2019.
Schneider, Manfred. "The Dream of Transparency: Aquinas, Rousseau, Sartre."
In Transparency, Society and Subjectivity, pp. 85-104. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, 2018.
Scott, Otto. Rousseau and Romanticism. Routledge, 2017.
Swain, Virginia E. Grotesque figures: Baudelaire, Rousseau, and the aesthetics of modernity.
JHU Press, 2020.

5“THE DREAM” BY ROUSSEAU
Appendix 1
“The Dream” by Rousseau
Replication of the Painting done by me

6“THE DREAM” BY ROUSSEAU