This is the free-write and individual presentation paper I wrote about imagination and how it has affected society throughout history.

Imagination

Imagination is quite a strange puzzle. It is hard to place one's finger exactly on a definition that can fully describe what imagination is. It can be defined as a persons subconscious thoughts and dreams, or a place one goes to escape the blandness of every day life. It is almost impossible to define. One thing that is for certain is that the need for a person to escape the dreariness of every day life to a world of fantastical wonderment is directly related to the advancement in technology.

As technology progressed throughout history the possibilities for an escape from reality became much more accessible. It can be traced all the way back to the days of Hieronymus Bosch where you can easily see from his paintings of demons and monsters that he wanted to express his imagination. Yet back then all art had to be justified through some sort of religious aspect. So therefore, although miniscule, there was always some sort of a religious theme within his paintings. The next big evolution in imaginative expression the invention of the printing press and the ability to print novels where then everyone, not just the rich, had the ability to purchase and read stories. Another huge advancement was the ability to print color covers on those novels. Now the viewer could get a real glimpse into what the author was trying to portray. This also gave many fantasy artists such as the great Frank Frazetta their starts. Then along came the comic book industry, which allowed the viewer to see a visual interpretation of what before he could only imagine. One great influential figure in that industry was Jack Kirby who created the image of many of the great heroes of today such as the fantastic four and the silver surfer. The next and possibly biggest boom in the industry were movies and video games. These have, in recent years, become so believable that it really seems like one could have their own place within the story. It really acts as a great escape where a person can forget their worries and escape to their own fictional world. It is hard to argue that imagination is not directly correlated with technology.