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In this painting The Cardsharps that Caravaggio painted in 1595, there is two young boys playing
game of cards. And an older man who seems to be guiding one of the boys (the one on
the right) on which cards to play. This painting is showing the boys playing cards, but its
not a fun and honest game. The boy on the right, the one with the feathered hat and
the dagger in his pocket is cheating. He has cards behind his back, and he is just waiting
for the older man to signal him when to play those cards. The boy on the left has no clue
that that's happening. He looks younger than the other boy. With his rosy cheeks and nice
clothing, I don't even think that he would even have a clue on how to cheat, or even
cheat at all. But the boy with the dagger in his pocket and cards behind his back is
not playing fairly at all. This painting was painted around 1595. And
just by looking at this painting you van conclude that this isn't a fair game that's being played.
To some people this painting could mean that you really can't trust people, even the ones
that you might think are your friends. Because the boy on the left might have thought that
this was just an honest game of cards, but he didn't know that he was the one being played.
I think that this painting represents dishonesty and disloyalty. Besides the boy that is cheating
by holing cards behind his back, the adult in this painting is also helping him cheat.
To whereas adults are supposed to teach kids right from wrong. The boy in the left may
also trust the older guy or the older guy could even work for the boy on the left or
his family. Because judging by the boy's clothes he could be wealthy, or the man might even
be his friend, again someone he trusts, and he is betraying his trust. This artwork makes
me feel that you really don't know whom you can trust. You might have a friend that you
think you can trust, and then they go and talk behind your back, or do something to
intentionally hurt you in some way. This painting may be just two boys playing cards, and one
of them cheating, and the adult in the painting helping him cheat, but its more than that.
This painting is more than just a card game, it's about not knowing who to trust. You may
think that you can trust an adult in your life but then that trust gets broken, same
with a friend. This painting to me also means another thing. By cheating in the game, the
boy with the feathered hat will most likely win the game. He is basically stealing the
game, stealing the win. This can also be applied to real life. There will be at least one point
in your life where you will have something stolen from you. Whether it be a card game,
a chance at something you really want, or even a job. Sometimes there will be people
that are two steps ahead of you. This is a really good work of art, because
it portrays real life situations, like trust and dishonesty. The boy on the left thought
that he was playing a fair game but instead he was being played and lied to. This artwork
doesn't change my life in a drastic way, because in today's world I know that you really can't
trust just anyone, and you probably shouldn't. This painting does make me see things clearer,
that even hundreds of years ago cheating, lying, and stealing were also things that
people did back then. It just may have gotten worse now.
I would say that my interpretation and the museums interpretation of the painting were
similar. We both think that the boy on the left is being cheated and that the adult in
the painting is helping the other young boy cheat, instead of teaching him that that's
wrong. I like that the museum notice the boy's on the left clothes, that they are very nice
looking and that he might have been wealthy. They also noticed the boy with the feathered
hat had a dagger in his pocket.