Doing Aesthetics with Arendt: How to See Things (Columbia Themes in Philosophy, Social Criticism, and the Arts)

Cecilia Sjöholm reads Hannah Arendt as a philosopher of the senses, grappling with questions of vision, hearing, and touch even in her political work. Constructing an Arendtian theory of aesthetics from the philosopher's fragmentary writings on art and perception, Sjöholm begins a vibrant new chapter in Arendt scholarship that expands her relevance for contemporary philosophers. Constructs an Arendtian theory of aesthetics from the philosopher’s fragmentary writings on art and perception. Cecilia Sjöholm reads Hannah Arendt as a philosopher of the senses, grappling with questions of vision, hearing and touch even in her political work. Constructing an Arendtian theory of aesthetics from the philosopher's fragmentary writings on art and perception, Sjöholm begins a vibrant new chapter in Arendt scholarship that expands her relevance for contemporary philosophers. Arendt wrote thoughtfully about the role of sensibility and aesthetic judgment in political life and on the power of art to enrich human experience. Sjöholm draws a clear line from Arendt's consideration of these subjects to her reflections on aesthetic encounters and works of art mentioned in her published writings and stored among her memorabilia. This delicate effort allows Sjöholm to revisit Arendt's political concepts of freedom, plurality, and judgment from an aesthetic point of view and incorporate Arendt's insight into current discussions of literature, music, theater, and visual art. Though Arendt did not explicitly outline an aesthetics, Sjöholm's work substantively incorporates her perspective into contemporary reckonings with radical politics and their relationship to art. -- Publisher Cecilia Sjöholm reads Hannah Arendt as a philosopher of the senses, grappling with questions of vision, hearing, and touch even in her political work. Constructing an Arendtian theory of aesthetics from the philosopher's fragmentary writings on art and perception, Sjöholm begins a vibrant new chapter in Arendt scholarship that expands her relevance for contemporary philosophers. Arendt wrote thoughtfully about the role of sensibility and aesthetic judgment in political life and on the power of art to enrich human experience. Sjöholm draws a clear line from Arendt's consideration of these subjects to her reflections on aesthetic encounters and the works of art mentioned in her published writings and stored among her memorabilia. This delicate effort allows Sjöholm to revisit Arendt's political concepts of freedom, plurality, and judgment from an aesthetic point of view and incorporate Arendt's insight into current discussions of literature, music, theater, and visual art. Though Arendt did not explicitly outline an aesthetics, Sjöholm's work substantively incorporates her perspective into contemporary reckonings with radical politics and their relationship to art Gabriel Rockhill, Villanova University and the Atelier de théorie critique in Paris:In addition to filling a significant hole in existing scholarship, Sjöholm's book performs a powerful double gesture with far-reaching consequences. The double entendre of the title, Doing Aesthetics with Arendt, means both cultivating an account of aesthetics where there appeared to be none, and--perhaps more fundamentally--transforming the aesthetic apertures that pre-conceptually determine how a body of work appears. Sjöholm has truly done what appeared impossible by doing aesthetics with Arendt. Ewa Plonowska Ziarek, author of Feminist Aesthetics and the Politics of Modernism:Cecilia Sjöholm provides an original and provocative reinterpretation of the difficult and controversial philosophical issues in Arendt's studies, such as embodiment, realness, appearance, judgment and the role of sense experience. Doing Aesthetics with Arendt is written with admirable clarity, elegance, and a sense of its own unique voice Cecilia Sjöholm is professor of aesthetics at Södertörn University. Her research focuses on issues in phenomenology and aesthetics, with a particular emphasis on the history of aesthetics and its relation to politics. Her books include Regionality/Mondiality: Perspectives on Art, Aesthetics, and Globalization (with Charlotte Bydler); Kristeva and the Political; and The Antigone Complex: Ethics and the Invention of Feminine Desire. PHI001000,Philosophy/Aesthetics,ART009000,Art/Criticism & Theory Sensing Space : Art And The Public Sphere -- The Work Of Art -- The Encroachment Of Others -- Tensions Of Law : Tragedy And The Visibility Of Lives -- Comedy In The Dark : Arendt, Chaplin, And Anti-semitism. Cecilia Sjoholm. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Content: Sensing space : art and the public sphere -- The work of art -- The encroachment of others -- Tensions of law : tragedy and the visibility of lives -- Comedy in the dark : Arendt, Chaplin, and anti-Semitism.