▶ Your Answer :
The reading passage covers three major
points concerning the statue and that the identity of the person depicted is
Caesar. The speaker, however, clearly states why these points are debatable. The first made by the author is that
Caesar's appearance resembles the statue and hence, the statue was made to
illustrate Caesar. However, the listening challenges this by mentioning that
those characteristics pointed out by the writer such as deep wrinkles, the
chin, and the hairline were common for many other ancient people. Moreover, the
look of the statue does not match contemporary depicts of Caesar. Hence, the
appearance of the statue may not be an effective reason to conclude that the
statue was made to display Caesar. Another point made by the writer is that
Arles, the place where the statue found, has a close connection to Caesar so
that it is highly likely that the statue is of Caesar. On the contrary, the
lecturer asserts that this is not necessarily true due to the fact that because
there is another historical person who had a close link with Arles. The person
was in charge of and was a true founder of the area. Therefore, the fact that
the statue found in close proximity to Arles might not be a persuasive reason
to support that the life-sized bust depicts Caesar.
Lastly, the reading claims that the
material used was rare and expensive at that time so it is reasonable to infer
that the artwork illustrate Caesar. The professor debunks this by saying that
even though the material used were highly valuable, a lot of artists at that
time used such materials because of their bright and uniform colors. In
addition, the artists believed that luxurious materials pay the price when they
sell their artworks. Therefore, the use of unique materials are probably not a
viable reason. |