Teaching the Significance of 'Las Meninas' in Orbital
- Mar 4
- 3 min read
The following is and excerpt from our Orbital Study Companion, available on the resources
page of our website. This post has been created for teachers and students who are analysing Samantha Harvey's novel Orbital.
On page six, Harvey introduces a discussion of Las Meninas, a well known 17th century painting. Shaun recalls a school lesson that became significant due to it becoming the “first exchange” between him and the girl who would become his wife. When we consider all that Harvey suggests about perspective and the human desire to make meaning from our existence or search for clarity and stability, her use of the artwork stands out as an early symbol of such ideas. Fifteen year old Shaun is encouraged to consider “how the painting disoriented its viewer and left them not knowing what it was they were looking at.” Following a detailed explanation of the perspectives and ambiguous focus of the work, Harvey has the teacher offer a simple counter point that the painting is possibly about “nothing…just a room with some people in it and a mirror”. Just like Chie viewing a photograph of her mother with a “superimposed…guess at the truth”, and Nell and Shaun perceiving the beginnings of the universe, the painting can be both endlessly complex or plainly simple in its meaning. What becomes clear is Harvey’s examination of how a person brings their own perspective to a situation in their desire to find meaning or purpose in it.
Las Meninas (1656), Diego Velázquez. Oil on canvas. Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid. Image: Wikimedia Commons (public domain).
The painting is brought up again on page 104 as Pietro grasps the postcard that Shaun has brought with him. Following a complex set of questions as to the subject of the painting, Shaun’s wife has written “Welcome to the labyrinth of mirrors that is human life”, further exploration of the complexities of our existence and the challenge in finding a clear ‘answer’ amongst such chaos. Such deep consideration is cut through by Pietro’s simple statement that the subject is simply “the dog”. Following his curt assessment, Pietro removes himself from the situation, leaving Shaun with this new interpretation. For the first time, Shaun sees the importance of the dog having “its eyes closed”. “In a painting that’s all about looking and seeing, it’s the only living thing in the scene that isn’t looking anywhere, at anyone or anything.”
Through Pietro’s influence, Shaun has reached a new understanding. What’s telling is his ability to claim Pietro’s view as “right” - a clear answer rather than another interpretation to be added to the “labyrinth”. When viewed alongside his religious beliefs, Shaun’s need to make sense of the world and have faith in a clear reasoning becomes apparent. Shaun is not completely dogmatic in his views; especially considering that Pietro’s comment “has made Shaun see a different painting altogether to the one he’d seen before.” However, the word “right” suggests that Shaun’s search for meaning lies in the need for something to have a clear solution or explanation rather than grappling with the discomfort of uncertainty that comes with making sense of the world.
In closing out the examination of the painting and its meaning, Harvey leaves the reader with more to ponder about what it means to be human. As Shaun now sees, the dog is “an animal surrounded by the strangeness of humans…all the ways they’ve tried not to be animals and how comical this is”. Amongst a group of people with their own insecurities, vanity and pride, Shaun comes to see the dog as “the only thing in the painting that could be called vaguely free.”
We have lots more to say about this text! If you’d like for Ben to speak to your students or to your teaching team, please contact hello@englishlab.com.au
Please also look around our website for further resources and services that can help your Year Twelve teachers and students get the best out of themselves. Our study guide (of which this post is an excerpt from) is available by clicking on the ‘Resources’ tab at the top of this page.
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