Description
Book SynopsisFocusing mainly on the arts, this book explores the history of the idea of genius, from its origins in classical antiquity to its deconstruction in postmodernist criticism. It examines key points in the development of the idea and looks at what constitutes genius in specific subject areas.
Table of ContentsPoetic genius and its classical origins, Penelope Murray; the "super-artist" as genius - the 16th century view, Martin Kemp; the second Homeric renaissance - allegoresis and genius in early modern poetics, Glenn Most; Shakespeare and original genius, Jonathan Bate; Goethe on genius, Michael Beddow; the emptiness of genius - aspects of Romanticism, Drummond Bone; Nietzsche on genius, Michael Tanner; deconstructing genius - Paul de Man and the critique of Romantic ideology, Christopher Norris; what is musical genius?, Wilfred Mellers; genius in mathematics, Clive Kilmister; genius and mental disorder - a history of ideas concerning their conjunction, Neil Kessel; genius and psychoanalysis - Freud, Jung and the concept of personality, Anthony Storr.
