Schiller S Aesthetic Essays

Friedrich Schiller, the dramatist and poet, greatly influenced the development of aesthetics through his essays. He sums up the eighteenth century while anticipating modern ideas; his notions of the naive and the sentimental, of art as play, and of beauty as semblance, have had a lasting impact on aesthetic speculation. Dr Sharpe's book is the first study devoted to tracing the attempts of successive generations of philosophers and literary critics to expound the works and deal with the problems they present. Surveying Anglo-American as well as German-language criticism, she illuminates the impact of critical and political change on their evaluation.

The special subject of the greater part of the letters and essays of Schiller contained in this volume is Aesthetics; and before passing to any remarks on his treatment of the subject it will be useful to offer a few observations on the nature of this topic, and on its treatment by the philosophical spirit of different ages. First, then, aesthetics has for its object the vast realm of the beautiful, and it may be most adequately defined as the philosophy of art or of the fine arts. To some the definition may seem arbitrary, as excluding the beautiful in nature; but it will cease to appear so if it is remarked that the beauty which is the work of art is higher than natural beauty, because it is the offspring of the mind. Moreover, if, in conformity with a certain school of modern philosophy, the mind be viewed as the true being, including all in itself, it must be admitted that beauty is only truly beautiful when it shares in the nature of mind, and is mind's offspring. Viewed in this light, the beauty of nature is only a reflection of the beauty of the mind, only an imperfect beauty, which as to its essence is included in that of the mind. Nor has it ever entered into the mind of any thinker to develop the beautiful in natural objects, so as to convert it into a science and a system. The field of natural beauty is too uncertain and too fluctuating for this purpose. Moreover, the relation of beauty in nature and beauty in art forms a part of the science of aesthetics, and finds again its proper place. But it may be urged that art is not worthy of a scientific treatment. Art is no doubt an ornament of our life and a charm to the fancy; but has it a more serious side? When compared with the absorbing necessities of human existence, it might seem a luxury, a superfluity, calculated to enfeeble the heart by the assiduous worship of beauty, and thus to be actually prejudicial to the true interest of practical life. This view seems to be largely countenanced by a dominant party in modern times, and practical men, as they are styled, are only too ready to take this superficial view of the office of art.

Friedrich Schiller was a German philosopher, poet, and playwright during the late 1700's. Schiller was in the army when he began writing his first plays. His superiors found his first composition and immediately told him that he was no longer allowed to write anymore. In response, Schiller deserted the army, moved to another country, and began writing under a false name. During this time, Schiller became close with famed playwright Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. Along with Goethe, Schiller was a deep-thinker on ethics and aesthetics. His beliefs held that beauty is not just an aesthetic experience; beauty is connected with goodness. He also was preoccupied with the morals of human freedom and how the will for freedom conflicted with self-preservation or martyrdom. Both Schiller and Goethe had a complex relationship with Immanuel Kant's philosophies, though they respected Kant for his influence on the subject of aesthetics. Some critics and philosophers have looked at Schiller's works such as the ones present in "Aesthetical and Philosophical Essays" and believed that Schiller's ideas have the potential for being very useful to society. Because Schiller believed that the aesthetic function of beauty could release mankind from struggle, some have argued that his views could ultimately change the world if adopted by all people. While Schiller is not seen as one of the foremost thinkers on ethics and aesthetics, he certainly proved his intelligent ideas and critiques of the subjects with works such as this one.

Aesthetical Essays Friedrich Schiller - "Aesthetical and Philosophical Essays", is fantastic collection of essays, it will appeal to those with an interest in aesthetics and philosophy, and constitutes a must-have for fans and collectors of Schillers seminal work. The essays contained herein include: The Moral Utility of Aesthetic Manners, On the Sublime, The Pathetic, On Grace and Dignity, On Dignity, Limitations in the Use of Beauty of Form, The Vulgar and Low Elements in Works of Art, Reflections on Different Questions of Aesthetics, etcetera. Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (1759 - 1805) was an influential German philosopher, poet, historian, and playwright.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.