Description
Book SynopsisArt and Reality is a collection of general theoretical reflections and particular critical studies, in which John Anderson asserts the essential role of art and aesthetics in intellectual life. Rejecting the notion that artistic appreciation is simply a matter of spontaneous response or 'personal taste', Anderson argues that genuine criticism requires the application of general aesthetic principles and an awareness of the relationship between art and nature. In exploring how beauty is experienced and defined, he considers a wide range of authors, from Homer to Joyce, Melville to Dostoevsky, Shakespeare to Shaw. He outlines his underlying theory of aesthetics and offers commentary on some key controversies of his day, including psychoanalytic criticism, the Ern Malley hoax, and the censorship of Ulysses in Australia.With characteristic rigor and originality, Anderson proposes a philosophical way of approaching works of art, one which can lead us to a more meaningful and thoughtful engagement with literature.
Table of ContentsForeword by Janet C. Anderson
Introduction by Graham Cullum and Kimon Lycos 1. Some questions in aesthetics
2. Biography
3. Classicism versus romanticism
4. Romanticism and classicism
5. Psycho-analysis and romanticism
6. The comic
7. The nature of poetry
8. Poetry and society
9. Art and morality
10. Ulysses
11. The banning of Ulysses
12. James Joyce
13. James Joyce: Finnegans Wake
14. Exiles
15. The Applecart
16. George Bernard Shaw
17. The Perfect Wagnerite
18. Emperor and Galilean
19. Kenneth Grahame
20. Kipling
21. George Meredith
22. The Enormous Room
23. H.G. Wells
24. Thomas Love Peacock
25. Herman Melville
26. Feodor Dostoevsky
27. R.H. Benson
28. The detective story
29. Orage and the New Age circle
30. Music and emotion
31. Art and morals
32. Australian culture
33. Literature and life
34. Literary criticism
35. Further questions in aesthetics: beauty
Notes
Index
