A nun frightened by a ghost playing a guitar c. 1812 - 1820

Francisco Goya rendered this drawing of a terrified nun and a guitar-playing specter using sepia wash. Here, Goya masterfully explores themes of fear and the supernatural, tapping into the rich vein of folklore imagery present in Spanish culture. Consider the motif of the ghost, a figure that appears across cultures and eras, embodying repressed anxieties and unresolved pasts. In medieval art, ghosts often symbolized divine retribution or moral warnings, while in Romantic literature, they reflected psychological torment. Think of Hamlet's father, for instance, or even spectral figures in Japanese Noh theater. The nun's gesture of fear, with her raised hand and wide eyes, echoes the "affect formula" of the "Agitated Woman," a motif that goes back to classical antiquity and that I found in countless artworks. The haunting melody, whether real or imagined, adds a layer of psychological depth. Music, like the ghost, has the power to evoke memories and emotions buried deep within the subconscious. This interplay of fear, music, and the supernatural serves as a potent reminder of the cyclical nature of human experience, where the past constantly resurfaces to haunt the present.