ris
05-25-2009, 09:50 PM
Anyone familiar? I don't agree with everything he says, but gosh it's fun stuff to read (or maybe i'm just a huge nerd...)
Allow me to quote...
"The first thing every modern reader does, when he reads what Plato has to say about poetry, is to assume that Plato is describing an aesthetic experience similar to our own. The second thing he does is to lose his temper because Plato describes it so badly. With most readers there is no third stage."
:lol:
I'm not a huge Plato fan though, so maybe that helps.
At any rate, what he's really discussing in that particular piece (i.e. 'The Principles of Art') is the definition of the term "art" - in particular making distinction between art and pseudo-art, i.e. "craft" and "entertainment or magical arts". The first point of distinction is that art proper is not created with any specific means; there are no objective means to create artistic ends. Collingwood uses the example of poetry, there being no clear means to write poetry (he lists humorous possibilities like “getting drunk”), and it cannot be said what the goal or end of poetry should be. The end achieved cannot be predetermined as artistic, that is it cannot be said what the end should be for something to be considered art. He also discusses the importance of planning and execution, and most importantly, Expression. He has a fairly Kantian view on the way art should be considered (i.e. disinterestedly to allow for freedom of judgment,etc), as well as art being useless (thus it isn't craft, which has purpose)...
I could go on, but i'm more interested to see if anyone else enjoyed reading this particular piece of his (or if anyone has read other stuff he's written, that you'd recommend to me..?)
Allow me to quote...
"The first thing every modern reader does, when he reads what Plato has to say about poetry, is to assume that Plato is describing an aesthetic experience similar to our own. The second thing he does is to lose his temper because Plato describes it so badly. With most readers there is no third stage."
:lol:
I'm not a huge Plato fan though, so maybe that helps.
At any rate, what he's really discussing in that particular piece (i.e. 'The Principles of Art') is the definition of the term "art" - in particular making distinction between art and pseudo-art, i.e. "craft" and "entertainment or magical arts". The first point of distinction is that art proper is not created with any specific means; there are no objective means to create artistic ends. Collingwood uses the example of poetry, there being no clear means to write poetry (he lists humorous possibilities like “getting drunk”), and it cannot be said what the goal or end of poetry should be. The end achieved cannot be predetermined as artistic, that is it cannot be said what the end should be for something to be considered art. He also discusses the importance of planning and execution, and most importantly, Expression. He has a fairly Kantian view on the way art should be considered (i.e. disinterestedly to allow for freedom of judgment,etc), as well as art being useless (thus it isn't craft, which has purpose)...
I could go on, but i'm more interested to see if anyone else enjoyed reading this particular piece of his (or if anyone has read other stuff he's written, that you'd recommend to me..?)