Edvard Munch believed that “art should be about people who breathe, who feel emotions, who suffer love”. He created many images of the innermost feelings and mental torment of the modern man. Munch had a traumatic childhood. This caused him to have anxiety and restlessness, leading to a nervous breakdown in 1908. He recuperated and settled down afterwards. He painted his work “Jealousy” in 1895. His murals were installed at the Christiania University in 1916. However, Nazis confiscated them in 1937 (Cordulack).
Jealousy combines themes of passion and jealousy with the biblical symbol of temptation. Munch portrays his friend Stanislaw Przybyszewski (the man in the back) as Adam being tempted by the seductress, Eve, picking the fateful apple. We see her reaching for the forbidden fruit while her red robe slips away revealing her naked body. The man shown in the front wishes that he could be in the position of the man in back with the beautiful temptress offering him the fruit. We can tell by the expression on his face that he is sad and lonely. He could possibly be reminiscing about a time when he and the woman were together. He is wearing dark clothing that also suggests sadness, where the temptress is in red, a color suggesting promiscuity. His frustration and jealousy are shown in the expression of his face.
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