Why does English call a "still life" what the Italians call "Natura Morta"

In looking up the American English meaning of "still life", I find the
Italians & French refer to it as "dead nature".

What do the British call a photograph of fruits sitting on a table?

Any idea of the origin of the opposite feelings across the pond?

" kaci wrote in message
t...

In looking up the American English meaning of "still life", I find the
Italians & French refer to it as "dead nature".

What do the British call a photograph of fruits sitting on a table?

"Still life" is a type of painting characterized by
(1) No people in the picture (no portraits, no figures);
(2) Close-up focus i.e. not a "landscape" or picture
of a building etc.

A century ago these pictorial categories were used to
talk about photographs: but much less nowadays.

--
Don Phillipson
Carlsbad Springs
(Ottawa, Canada)

In alt.usage.english Don Phillipson wrote:

"Still life" is a type of painting characterized by
(1) No people in the picture (no portraits, no figures);

I was thinking about Cezanne the other day. He was the bourgeois' favorite
peasant painter because he hardly puts any nasty peasants in his Provencal
paintings.

On Fri, 27 Apr 2007 13:36:01 GMT, "
kaci wrote:

In looking up the American English meaning of "still life", I find the
Italians & French refer to it as "dead nature".

What do the British call a photograph of fruits sitting on a table?

A "still life".

From the COED:
http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/stilllife?view=uk

a painting or drawing of an arrangement of objects such as
flowers or fruit.

The SOED definition is broader:

Still life. 1695 [f. STILL a. + LIFE sb., after Du.
'stilleven'.] Inanimate objects, such as fruit, flowers, dead
game, vessels, etc., as represented in painting.

Any idea of the origin of the opposite feelings across the pond?

I wonder whether we should interpret the words as "dead" = "still",
and "nature" = "life".


--
Peter Duncanson, UK
(in alt.usage.english)

wrote:
In looking up the American English meaning of "still life", I find the

Probably from German "Stillleben", literally meaning "quiet life".

Italians & French refer to it as "dead nature".
Any idea of the origin of the opposite feelings across the pond?

I don't see much opposite at all. "quiet/still" is quite similar to "dead"
as is "life" to "nature" (most people will not think of rocks or water when
taking about nature. First thought is living things like trees or animals or
live flowers).

jue

Biljo White wrote:
" kaci wrote:
".

What do the British call a photograph of fruits sitting on a table?


Parliament

Touché, Biljo...and thanks for the morning laugh.

kaci ) wrote in
t:

In looking up the American English meaning of "still life", I find
the Italians & French refer to it as "dead nature".

I think you're making a mistake by simply taking one dictionary
definition of each word of a phrase in another language and expecting
the result to make sense in English.

I can imagine some non-Enlish speaker doing the same with "still
life" and wondering about the non-carbonated aspect of it.

--
Bert Hyman | St. Paul, MN |

wrote:
In looking up the American English meaning of "still life", I find the
Italians & French refer to it as "dead nature".

What do the British call a photograph of fruits sitting on a table?

"Quelques fruits sur une table".

or

"Between customers at the salon".

--
lsmft

cityinvestor wrote:

In looking up the American English meaning of "still life", I find the
Italians & French refer to it as "dead nature".

What do the British call a photograph of fruits sitting on a table?

A gathering of gay.

Purl Gurl

Ï "Biljo White" Ýãñáøå óôï ìÞíõìá
...

" kaci wrote:
".

What do the British call a photograph of fruits sitting on a table?

Parliament


Exquisite!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!