Synthesis Essay On Color

851 Words4 Pages

Warning: this essay contains extreme bias towards the color yellow and may be offensive to some readers. Reader discretion is advised.

Colors are an enchanting part of life, though they often go unthought of. Having seen them every day of our lives, we often dismiss the vibrant hues that surround us. The sky is blue - though really, it is only sometimes blue, and other times white, purple, or red. Grass is green - though really, it is only sometimes green, and is far more often a shade of brown, or yellow.
I have always harbored an express dislike for the color yellow. Originally this was due to the ascetics of the color itself. “But it’s so bright and happy,” people would tell me - and yes, I suppose it is a very bright color, but it is …show more content…

Of course it is, that’s common knowledge to everyone past kindergarten age. Fact established. Second: our eyes have cones that are specialized to perceive the colors red, blue, and green. All colors we see are some combination of these three. Fact established. Now, the question becomes, if yellow is a primary color, meaning no other colors can be manipulated to create it, how can we see it with eyes that perceive only a mix of three colors (none of which are the apparently-primary yellow)? This revelation came upon me suddenly, a surprise even to myself, and at the time I was horrified - one of these supposed “facts” could not be true at …show more content…

If no one would answer me, then I would just have to find out for myself. I did my research and found my answer. The facts I presented are actually both true, despite the paradox they seem to create. The explanation for how this is possible deals with the various light systems that humans interact with. Computer screens and our eyes use an additive system, where the three colors (red, blue, and green) get lighter as they are combined, all three coming together to create white. When we draw or paint, we are interacting with a subtractive system, where the three primary colors (red, blue, and yellow) get darker as they are combined, eventually forming