Francisco Goya (1746-1828) has been regarded as the last of the old masters and as the first of the moderns. His paintings of the Spanish royal family show his great skills as a classical painter 40 his bold and daring creativity revealed in his later years anticipates geniuses like Manet and Picasso. The cause of this divergent creative power, judging from Goya’s life, might be his diseases. After 41 a high fever in 1792, Goya was left deaf, which kept him gradually isolating himself from the world. He started producing frightening paintings of insanity and fantasy, the so-called Black Paintings, as a way to 42 the fears and nightmares in his dark mind. The deafness and noises in his head may be a result of a prolonged viral encephalitis or a series of minor strokes. In brief, it was perhaps Goya’s diseases that caused his astounding creativity.
【題組】42 (A)secure (B)sustain (C)soothe (D)stimulate