Undoing Aesthetics (Published in association with Theory, Culture & Society)

`The aestheticization of everyday life′ has become a commonplace term, one which often merely scratches the surface of contemporary culture. This study illuminates the deeper dynamics of aesthetic reality from a philosophical perspective. Wolfgang Welsch, author of the influential Aesthetic Thinking , develops an important analysis of contemporary culture with philosophical bite. He examines global aestheticization phenomena, probes the relationship of aesthetics and ethics, and considers the broad relevance of aesthetics for contemporary thinking. He argues that modes of thought familiar from the aesthetic realm comprise fundamental paradigms for understanding today′s reality. The implications for specific and everyday issues are demonstrated in studies of architecture, advertising, the Internet and our perception of the life world. I. New Scenarios Of The Aesthetic -- 1. Aestheticization Processes: Phenomena, Distinctions And Prospects -- 2. Basic Aesthetic Features In Contemporary Thinking -- 3. Aesthet/hics: Ethical Implications And Consequences Of Aesthetics -- 4. Aesthetics Beyond Aesthetics: For A New Form To The Discipline -- Ii. Diagnoses And Prospects -- 5. How Modern Was Modern Architecture? -- 6. Contemporary Art In Public Space: A Feast For The Eyes Or An Annoyance? -- 7. On The Hermeneutic Constitution Of Art -- 8. Cities Of The Future: Aspects From Architectural Theory And Cultural Philosophy -- 9. On The Way To An Auditive Culture? -- 10. Artificial Paradises?: Considering The World Of Electronic Media -- And Other Worlds -- 11. Information Superhighway Or Highway One? Wolfgang Welsch ; Translated By Andrew Inkpin. These Essays And Lectures Originated In The Years 1990-5 And Developed From The Author's Aesthetic Thinking Which Appeared In German In 1990. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. "'The aestheticization of everyday life' has become a commonplace term, one which often merely scratches the surface of contemporary culture. This study illuminates the deeper dynamics of aesthetic reality from a philosophical perspective." "Welsch develops an important analysis of contemporary culture with philosophical bite. He examines global aestheticization phenomena, probes the relationship of aesthetics and ethics and considers the broad relevance of aesthetics for contemporary thinking. The book also argues that modes of thought from the aesthetic realm comprise fundamental paradigms for understanding today's reality. The implications for specific and everyday issues are demonstrated in studies of architecture, advertising, the Internet, and our perception of the life world."--Jacket

'The aestheticization of everyday life' has become a commonplace term, one which often merely scratches the surface of contemporary culture. This study illuminates the deeper dynamics of aesthetic reality from a philosophical perspective.

Wolfgang Welsch, author of the influential Aesthetic Thinking, develops an important analysis of contemporary culture with philosophical bite. He examines global aestheticization phenomena, probes the relationship of aesthetics and ethics, and considers the broad relevance of aesthetics for contemporary thinking. He argues that modes of thought familiar from the aesthetic realm comprise fundamental paradigms for understanding today's reality. The implications for specific and every

In this discussion of the aesthetic in everyday life the aesthetic codes of advertising, architecture, the Internet and everyday images are used as examples of the disorientation which a multiplication of codes creates. Welsch proposes untangling the `aestheticization of everyday life' and replacing it by more meaningful and durable categories. The following deliberations are comprised of four parts.