Aesthetics: The Classic Readings

The newly expanded and revised edition of this bestselling anthology features a comprehensive collection of classic writings on aesthetics. With excerpts from Plato’s Republic andKant’s Critique of Judgement, as well as complete essays by Hume on taste and Tolstoy on art, this collection includes the main texts of the philosophical canon. Expanding its scope beyond the Western tradition, the collection also includes several important texts from Asian traditions of aesthetics, including writings by Mo Tzu, Shih-t’ao and JunichirM Tanizaki. The new edition includes an introduction to aesthetics written by the editor as well as prefaces to each text that make the topics accessible to students at all levels. It is also includes detailed lists of further reading. Covering a range of topics from the nature of beauty and the criteria of aesthetic judgement to the value of art and the appreciation of nature, the new edition of Aesthetics: The Classic Readings will continue to be a valuable resource for lecturers, students and researchers alike.