Essays on Aesthetics

art is quite useless” (Wilde 4). In this one sentence, Wilde encapsulates the complete principles of the Aesthetic Movement popular in Victorian England. That is to say, real art takes no part in molding the social or moral identities of society, nor should it. Art should be beautiful and pleasure its observer, but to imply further-reaching influence would be a mistake. The explosion of aesthetic philosophy in fin-de-siècle English society, as exemplified by Oscar Wilde, was not confined to merely

In Nature & Landscape: An Introduction to Environmental Aesthetics, Allen Carlson proposes that scientific knowledge can enhance our aesthetic appreciation of the natural world. He draws a connection between technical know-how used in the context of natural landscapes and art history or criticism in the context of conventional art forms. In either case, the viewer would find relatively more meaningful experiences of aesthetic appreciation than if one looked at a painting or landscape without any

one of the most fascinating, clever, genius, and complex pieces I have ever had the pleasure of reading. The first of his many works published pseudonymously, Either/Or studies the first two of Kierkegaard’s three stages of existential living--aesthetic and ethical. By writing under four pseudonyms throughout the two volumes, Kierkegaard removes his personal beliefs and allows the reader to make their own choice on the best way to live. Throughout this essay, I will explore how Kierkegaard begins

beauty, just as no unanimous definition of art itself. Therefore, examining the art of a culture or time reveals priceless insights as to the aesthetics of the culture, which in turn reveal important facts and messages about the culture itself. More intriguingly, the aesthetics of beauty can change throughout time and in response to events. Therefore, aesthetics is a pure means of social commentary through art. This principle is easily observed within the America, as the country is a mixture of types

The Moral Importance of the Beautiful in Kant I argue for an interpretation of Kant's aesthetics whereby the experience of the beautiful plays the same functional role in the invisible church of natural religion as Scripture does for the visible churches of ecclesiastical religions. Thus, I contend, the links that Kant himself implies between the aesthetic and the moral (in the third Critique and the Religion) are much stronger than generally portrayed by commentators. Indeed, for Kant, experience

novel, Pecola was raped. While some people believe that Pecola was to blame for her rape, and while others think that Cholly was the one to blame, Morrison shows how society is to blame for Pecola’s rape, due to placing racial beauty and western aesthetics standards on her. First of all, Morrison uses lack of spacing to show how Pecola’s rape is due to society when the author starts the book off with the “Dick and Jane” book. In the 1940’s the children's book “Dick and Jane” had placed the white man’s

in several distinct ways. This essay will summarize both authors’ main points and compare and contrast the fundamental differences of their arguments. Lessing begins “What is Wrong with a Forgery” by establishing that forgeries are not void of aesthetic value. In fact, he states that a clear distinction must be made between the

that he knows all about the past and the future. He also is the castrating fatherly presence. His entering (or better intrusion) in the closet scene dis-empowers the Prince both sexually and politically. These two realms are yoked together in the aesthetics of hidden-ness. The latter concept is quite intriguing. Indeed, unlike the invisible, the hidden is sublime because it is ultimately accessible, but no one except the author has access to

that add a touch of serenity to our miserable existences called aesthetics. Aesthetics as an adjective is defined as concern with beauty of the appreciation of beauty. As a noun it means a set of principles underlying and guiding the work of a particular artist or artistic movement. The surrounding beauty that we take for continuous granted is significant towards our existence. In everyday interaction, we straddle the line between aesthetic judgement, where we appreciate any object, instead

Pleasure, contemplation, and judgment are the key elements in aesthetics. Pleasure is what you feel after watching a certain piece of art, which can be positive or negative emotions as the goal of this step is to accept everything you feel from it, so you can think about it in the contemplation phase. Like I said before contemplation is the thinking phase, which means that the goal is to understand all of the emotions that you might be having in the pleasure phase in order to make a clear verdict