Tonight’s Rose Cafe on Melancholy in Art and Life was led by our own GRF Sara, a graduate student focusing on Renaissance literature. Sara began her talk by asking how we differentiate melancholy and sadness. I personally have always thought of sadness as a temporary feeling, and melancholy as a gloom that persists over time. Another Rose Scholar suggested that the word melancholy feels antiquated. In fact, Sara confirmed that this word was used to describe several health conditions in ancient Greece. Melancholy was supposedly associated with black bile, one of the four humors thought to govern the body’s physiology and the mind’s emotional states.
Sara described how melancholy was perhaps coveted in ancient times, as it was considered an attribute of geniuses and often associated with beauty in art. She contrasted this sentiment with our modern-day view of sadness as something we must limit in every aspect of our lives. I, myself, have certainly strived to feel positive emotions as much as possible. However, I now wonder if it is truly healthier to actively limit the sadness I feel. If I allowed myself to more deeply and thoroughly experience sadness, rather than suppressing this emotion, would I be able to recognize genius and beauty in places I have never before?
While the term melancholy does seem more outdated than the word “sad”, that doesn’t mean that this feeling no longer exists. I also try to always look on the bright side as well as think and feel positively as much as possible. However I think it makes sense to acknowledge feelings of sadness and melancholy so that it will be easier to overcome them, as opposed to suppress them.