Home›Philosophers›Branch of Philosophy›AestheticsBranches of PhilosophyAestheticsess-THET-iksAlso Known As Philosophy of ArtAestheticsReference and ClassificationVerifiedThe branch of philosophy concerned with beauty, art, and taste: what makes something beautiful, whether beauty is a real property of objects or a response in the perceiver, and what art is for. The term itself was coined by Alexander Baumgarten in 1735 to name a science of sensory knowledge, but the underlying questions are ancient: Plato treated beauty as a form that particular beautiful things imperfectly share in, and worried that poetry and representational art could mislead the soul, while Aristotle's Poetics defended tragedy as a source of catharsis, an emotional purification, rather than a moral danger. Kant's Critique of Judgment later argued that a genuine aesthetic judgment claims universal validity, that everyone ought to agree a thing is beautiful, while resting on nothing more than a subjective feeling of pleasure, a tension that still structures debate over whether taste can be objectively wrong.FactsAestheticsFAQsConnectionsIn the Other AtlasesSourcesComments (0)Reader Challenges (0)FactsDisputedKey DebateScholarly debateIntentionalism versus anti-intentionalism: whether the artist's intended meaning fixes the correct interpretation of a work, as intentionalists hold, or whether a work's meaning is independent of, and can exceed, what its maker intended, a dispute sharpened by W.K. Wimsatt and Monroe Beardsley's naming of the intentional fallacy. 1W.K. Wimsatt and Monroe Beardsley's essay naming the intentional fallacy did not end the dispute; intentionalist critics continue to defend the author's intended meaning as interpretively decisive.Central QuestionWell-attestedWhat makes an object or an experience beautiful, and is beauty a real property of the thing itself or a response that belongs to the perceiver? 1Key DebateWell-attestedWhether beauty is objective, an intrinsic feature of things waiting to be perceived correctly, or subjective, residing in the response of the perceiver: Kant located aesthetic judgment in a subjective feeling of pleasure that nonetheless claims universal agreement, a position that satisfies neither a fully objectivist nor a fully relativist reading of taste. 1AestheticsFilter Results50 entriesMovementAllAfrican Political Thought (1)Analytic Aesthetics (9)Analytic Epistemology (1)Analytic Philosophy Of Language (1)Contemporary Continental Philosophy (2)Continental And Phenomenological Aesthetics (5)Continental And Phenomenological Epistemology (2)Continental And Phenomenological Ethics (1)East Asian Aesthetics (1)Feminist Aesthetics (2)Indian And Buddhist Epistemology (1)Marxist And Critical Theory (2)Marxist And Critical Theory Aesthetics (3)Marxist And Critical Theory Philosophy Of Language (1)Other Aesthetics Traditions (8)Other Ethics Traditions (1)Postcolonial And Decolonial Thought (2)Pragmatist Aesthetics (1)Pragmatist Epistemology (1)Rationalist Empiricist And Idealist Aesthetics (3)Renaissance And Enlightenment (1)Virtue Ethics (1)School of PhilosophyAllExistentialism (1)Frankfurt School (1)Marxism (1)EraAll1714 (1)1729 (1)1759 (1)1859 (1)1866 (1)1870 (1)1879 (1)1881 (1)1882 (1)1885 (1)1889 (2)1892 (1)1893 (1)1894 (1)1895 (1)1900 (1)1903 (1)1906 (1)1909 (2)1915 (1)1920 (1)1923 (1)1924 (3)1925 (1)1926 (1)1934 (1)1935 (1)1937 (1)1939 (1)1941 (2)1942 (1)1944 (1)1947 (1)1948 (1)1950 (1)1953 (1)1956 (1)1957 (1)1960 (1)1962 (1)1964 (1)1969 (1)1972 (1)TraditionAllAmerican pragmatism, instrumentalism (1)Analytic philosophy (5)Analytic philosophy with a mystical strand (1)Analytical tradition, aesthetics (1)British Idealism (1)Contemporary philosophy of art (1)Continental philosophy (1)Continental philosophy (post-structuralism) (1)Everyday aesthetics and Japanese aesthetics, wabi-sabi (1)Frankfurt School, Critical Theory (1)Instrumentalist theory of art, associated with New Criticism (1)Japanese moral philosophy (ethics) (1)Neo-Hegelianism (1)Philosophy of art and evolutionary aesthetics (1)Philosophy of music (1)Process philosophy (1)Rationalism (Age of Enlightenment) (1)NationalityAllArgentina (1)Austria (1)France (2)Germany (6)India (1)Ireland (1)Italy (2)Japan (2)Mexico (1)New Zealand (1)Norway (1)Peru (1)Poland (2)Russia (1)Sweden (1)United Kingdom (8)United States (14)Influenced ByAllAlfred North Whitehead (1)Arthur Danto (1)Benedetto Croce (1)Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (2)Immanuel Kant (1)Martin Heidegger (1)Max Horkheimer (1)Michel Foucault (1)Walter Benjamin (1)In GroupAllAfrican Political Thought (1)Analytic Aesthetics (9)Analytic Epistemology (1)Analytic Philosophy Of Language (1)Contemporary Continental Philosophy (2)Continental And Phenomenological Aesthetics (5)Continental And Phenomenological Epistemology (2)Continental And Phenomenological Ethics (1)East Asian Aesthetics (1)Feminist Aesthetics (2)Indian And Buddhist Epistemology (1)Marxist And Critical Theory (2)Marxist And Critical Theory Aesthetics (3)Marxist And Critical Theory Philosophy Of Language (1)Other Aesthetics Traditions (8)Other Ethics Traditions (1)Postcolonial And Decolonial Thought (2)Pragmatist Aesthetics (1)Pragmatist Epistemology (1)Rationalist Empiricist And Idealist Aesthetics (3)Renaissance And Enlightenment (1)Virtue Ethics (1)Birthplace / RegionAllArgentina (1)Austria (1)France (3)Germany (6)India (1)Ireland (1)Italy (2)Japan (2)Mexico (1)New Zealand (1)Norway (1)Peru (1)Poland (2)Russia (1)Sweden (1)United Kingdom (9)United States (14)Show ResultsBrowseCompareSelect all 50Alain LeRoy LockeAestheticsAlejandro VallegaAestheticsAlexander BaumgartenAestheticsArthur DantoAestheticsBenedetto CroceAestheticsCurt John DucasseAestheticsDaya KrishnaAestheticsDenis DuttonAestheticsEdmund BurkeAestheticsEva DadlezAestheticsFrank SibleyAestheticsFriedrich SchillerAestheticsGeorge DickieAestheticsGilles DeleuzeAestheticsGiorgio AgambenAestheticsGustav ShpetAestheticsHans MaesAestheticsHans-Georg GadamerAestheticsJean LacosteAestheticsJean-Francois LyotardAestheticsJerrold LevinsonAestheticsJohn DeweyAestheticsJolanta Brach-CzainaAestheticsJose Carlos MariateguiAestheticsJose VasconcelosAestheticsKathleen StockAestheticsKendall WaltonAestheticsKristin GjesdalAestheticsLewis GordonAestheticsMalcolm BuddAestheticsMax BlackAestheticsMichael TannerAestheticsMonroe BeardsleyAestheticsNelson GoodmanAestheticsNick ZangwillAestheticsNoël CarrollAestheticsPer BauhnAestheticsPeter KivyAestheticsPhilippa FootAestheticsR.G. CollingwoodAestheticsRoman IngardenAestheticsStephan WitasekAestheticsStephen DaviesAestheticsSusanne LangerAestheticsTheodor W. AdornoAestheticsValentin FeldmanAestheticsWalter BenjaminAestheticsWalter MignoloAestheticsWatsuji TetsuroAestheticsYuriko SaitoAestheticsFAQsIs beauty an objective property of things, or does it depend on the person perceiving it?Philosophers disagree over whether beauty is an intrinsic feature of an object waiting to be perceived correctly, or a response that belongs to the perceiver; Kant located aesthetic judgment in a subjective feeling of pleasure that still claims universal agreement.Philosophers disagree over whether beauty is objective, an intrinsic feature of things waiting to be perceived correctly, or subjective, residing in the response of the person perceiving it. Kant located aesthetic judgment in a subjective feeling of pleasure that nonetheless claims universal agreement from everyone else, a position that satisfies neither a fully objectivist nor a fully relativist reading of taste, and that unresolved middle position still shapes how philosophers argue about beauty today.ConnectionsAssociated WithAristotle, Philosophers Well-attested Source Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophytier 1Environmental Philosophy, Branches of Philosophy Well-attested Source Environmental Philosophy (Wikipedia)tier 3Immanuel Kant, Philosophers Well-attested Source Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophytier 1Philosophy of Film, Branches of Philosophy Well-attested ConnectedPhilosophy of film is standardly treated as an applied branch of aesthetics directed at the moving image, matching the same associated-with shape already live between Aesthetics and Philosophy of Sport.Philosophy of Sport, Branches of Philosophy Well-attested Source Philosophy of Sport (Wikipedia)tier 3Plato, Philosophers Well-attested Source Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophytier 1Founded ByAlexander Baumgarten, Philosophers Well-attested Baumgarten established aesthetics as a distinct philosophical discipline in the 18th century (Aesthetica, 1750/58).Additional Source Alexander Gottlieb Baumgarten (Wikipedia)Alexander Gottlieb Baumgarten, Wikipedia, lead sectiontier 3IncludesWatsuji Tetsuro, Philosophers Well-attested Source Watsuji Tetsuro (Wikipedia)Yuriko Saito, Philosophers Well-attested Source Yuriko Saito - WikipediaShowing 51 to 52 of 52 in Includes, page 2 of 2.← Previous12In the Other AtlasesInfluenced ByDadaAlso in Arts and Music Atlas: which influenced this subject.Sources1. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophytier 1Stanford University, Center for the Study of Language and Informationentry: The Concept of the AestheticIntroduced into the Western European philosophical lexicon during the 18th century, the term 'aesthetic' has come to designate, among other things, a kind of object, a kind of judgment, a kind of attitude, a kind of experience, and a kind of value.s.v. Aestheticss.v. Kant's Aesthetics and Teleologys.v. The Definition of ArtAssociated With: Plato, entry: AestheticsAssociated With: Aristotle, entry: AestheticsAssociated With: Immanuel Kant, entry: Aesthetics; Kant's Critique of JudgmentIncludes: On the Aesthetic Education of ManIncludes: Theodor W. AdornoView the SourceEncyclopaedia Britannicatier 1Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.Includes: Edmund BurkeView the SourceFriedrich Schiller (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyIncludes: Friedrich SchillerView the SourceEnvironmental Philosophy (Wikipedia)tier 3WikipediaAssociated With: Environmental Philosophy, Lead sectionQuote, Associated With: Environmental Philosophy, Lead sectionEnvironmental philosophy includes environmental ethics, environmental aesthetics, ecofeminism, environmental hermeneutics, and environmental theology.View the SourcePhilosophy of Sport (Wikipedia)tier 3WikipediaAssociated With: Philosophy of Sport, Lead sectionQuote, Associated With: Philosophy of Sport, Lead sectionThese issues cover many areas, but fall primarily into five philosophical categories: metaphysics, ethics and moral philosophy, philosophy of law, political philosophy and aesthetics.View the SourceAlexander Gottlieb Baumgarten (Wikipedia)tier 3WikipediaFounded By: Alexander Baumgarten, Alexander Gottlieb Baumgarten, Wikipedia, lead sectionHe established aesthetics as a philosophical discipline.Includes: Alexander Baumgarten, Infobox: main_interestsMetaphysics, ethics, aestheticsView the SourceJohn Dewey (Wikipedia)Includes: John Dewey, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: John Dewey, Infobox: main_interestsPhilosophy of education, epistemology, journalism, ethics, aesthetics, political philosophy, metaphysicsView the SourceGilles Deleuze (Wikipedia)tier 3WikipediaIncludes: Gilles Deleuze, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Gilles Deleuze, Infobox: main_interestsAesthetics, history of Western philosophy, literary theory, metaphilosophy, metaphysics, epistemology, social philosophy, psychoanalysis, semiotics (film semiotics)View the SourceWatsuji Tetsuro (Wikipedia)WikipediaIncludes: Watsuji Tetsuro, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Watsuji Tetsuro, Infobox: main_interestsAesthetics, ethics, culture, religionView the SourceWalter Benjamin (Wikipedia)tier 2WikipediaIncludes: Walter Benjamin, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Walter Benjamin, Infobox: main_interestsLiterary theory, aesthetics, philosophy of technology, epistemology, philosophy of language, philosophy of historyView the SourcePhilippa Foot (Wikipedia)tier 2WikipediaIncludes: Philippa Foot, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Philippa Foot, Infobox: main_interestsEthics, aestheticsView the SourceHans-Georg Gadamer (Wikipedia)tier 2WikipediaIncludes: Hans-Georg Gadamer, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Hans-Georg Gadamer, Infobox: main_interestsMetaphysics, Epistemology, Philosophy of language, Language, Ontology, Aesthetics, HermeneuticsView the SourceGiorgio Agamben (Wikipedia)tier 3WikipediaIncludes: Giorgio Agamben, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Giorgio Agamben, Infobox: main_interestsAesthetics Political philosophy Social philosophyView the SourceLewis Gordon (Wikipedia)tier 2WikipediaIncludes: Lewis Gordon, LeadQuote, Includes: Lewis Gordon, LeadLewis Ricardo Gordon (born May 12, 1962) is an American philosopher at the University of Connecticut who works in the areas of Africana philosophy, existentialism, phenomenology, social and political theory, postcolonial thought, theories of race and racism, philosophies of liberation, aesthetics, philosophy of education, and philosophy of religion.View the SourceJose Carlos Mariategui (Wikipedia)tier 2WikipediaIncludes: Jose Carlos Mariategui, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Jose Carlos Mariategui, Infobox: main_interestsPolitics, aestheticsView the SourceNelson Goodman (Wikipedia)tier 2WikipediaIncludes: Nelson Goodman, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Nelson Goodman, Infobox: main_interestsLogic, epistemology, metaphysics, induction, counterfactuals, mereology, aesthetics, philosophy of science, philosophy of languageView the SourceJean-Francois Lyotard (Wikipedia)tier 3WikipediaIncludes: Jean-Francois Lyotard, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Jean-Francois Lyotard, Infobox: main_interestsEpistemology, sociology, political philosophy, aestheticsView the SourceRoman Ingarden (Wikipedia)tier 3WikipediaIncludes: Roman Ingarden, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Roman Ingarden, Infobox: main_interestsAesthetics, epistemology, formal ontology, nature vs nurtureView the SourceR.G. Collingwood (Wikipedia)tier 3WikipediaIncludes: R.G. Collingwood, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: R.G. Collingwood, Infobox: main_interestsMetaphysics Philosophy of history AestheticsView the SourceSusanne Langer (Wikipedia)tier 3WikipediaIncludes: Susanne Langer, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Susanne Langer, Infobox: main_interestsPhilosophy of mind, aestheticsView the SourceArthur Danto (Wikipedia)tier 3WikipediaIncludes: Arthur Danto, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Arthur Danto, Infobox: main_interestsPhilosophy of art Philosophy of history Philosophy of actionView the SourceNoel Carroll - WikipediaIncludes: Noël Carroll, LeadQuote, Includes: Noël Carroll, LeadNoel Carroll (born December 25, 1947, in Far Rockaway, New York City) is an American philosopher and a leading figure in the contemporary philosophy of art, Aesthetics, Philosophy of film, or Cinema studies.View the SourceDenis Dutton - WikipediaIncludes: Denis Dutton, LeadQuote, Includes: Denis Dutton, LeadDr Denis Laurence Dutton (9 February 1944-28 December 2010) was an American-New Zealand philosopher of art, web entrepreneur, and media activist.View the SourceMonroe Beardsley (Wikipedia)tier 2WikipediaIncludes: Monroe Beardsley, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Monroe Beardsley, Infobox: main_interestsPhilosophy of artView the SourceGeorge Dickie - WikipediaIncludes: George Dickie, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: George Dickie, Infobox: main_interestsAestheticsView the SourceKendall Walton (Wikipedia)tier 2WikipediaIncludes: Kendall Walton, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Kendall Walton, Infobox: main_interestsAesthetics, ontology, philosophy of language, fictionalismView the SourceYuriko Saito - WikipediaIncludes: Yuriko Saito, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Yuriko Saito, Infobox: main_interestsAestheticsView the SourceCurt John Ducasse - WikipediaIncludes: Curt John Ducasse, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Curt John Ducasse, Infobox: main_interestsPhilosophy of mind, aesthetics, philosophy of religionView the SourceJerrold Levinson - WikipediaIncludes: Jerrold Levinson, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Jerrold Levinson, Infobox: main_interestsPhilosophy of artView the SourceFrank Sibley - WikipediaIncludes: Frank Sibley, LeadQuote, Includes: Frank Sibley, LeadFrank Noel Sibley (28 February 1923, London, 18 February 1996, Lancaster, Lancashire) was a British philosopher who worked mainly in the field of aesthetics.View the SourceMax Black, WikipediaIncludes: Max Black, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Max Black, Infobox: main_interestsPhilosophy of language Philosophy of mathematics Philosophy of science Philosophy of artView the SourceKathleen Stock - WikipediaIncludes: Kathleen Stock, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Kathleen Stock, Infobox: main_interestsAesthetics, fiction, imagination, sexual objectification, sexual orientationView the SourceJolanta Brach-Czaina, WikipediaIncludes: Jolanta Brach-Czaina, LeadQuote, Includes: Jolanta Brach-Czaina, LeadJolanta Brach-Czaina (/jɒlʌntʌ brʌh ʧʌ'iːnʌ/; 26 June 1937-16 March 2021) was a Polish philosopher and feminist, professor of philosophy, a long-standing academic lecturer, author and co-author of books on aesthetics, the philosophy of art and culture, anthropology and gender studies.View the SourceWikipedia: Nick Zangwilltier 2WikipediaIncludes: Nick Zangwill, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Nick Zangwill, Infobox: main_interestsAesthetics, metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of mind, philosophy of logic, meta-ethicsView the SourceStephen Davies (philosopher) (Wikipedia)Includes: Stephen Davies, LeadQuote, Includes: Stephen Davies, LeadHe mainly writes on aesthetics, particularly the philosophy of music but also works on political philosophy.View the SourceWikipedia: Kristin Gjesdaltier 2WikipediaIncludes: Kristin Gjesdal, LeadQuote, Includes: Kristin Gjesdal, LeadShe is known for her expertise in the field of hermeneutics (focusing especially on Hans-Georg Gadamer), nineteenth-century philosophy, aesthetics, and phenomenology.View the SourceWikipedia: Alejandro Vallegatier 2WikipediaIncludes: Alejandro Vallega, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Alejandro Vallega, Infobox: main_interestsAesthetics, phenomenology, hermeneutics, deconstruction, Ancient Greek thought, intercultural philosophyView the SourceWikipedia: Eva Dadleztier 2WikipediaIncludes: Eva Dadlez, Infobox: main_interestsQuote, Includes: Eva Dadlez, Infobox: main_interestsaesthetics, ethics, philosophy of fictionView the SourceBenedetto Croce (Wikipedia)tier 3WikipediaIncludes: Benedetto Croce, LeadQuote, Includes: Benedetto Croce, Leadwas an Italian idealist philosopher, historian, and politician who wrote on numerous topics, including philosophy, history, historiography, and aesthetics.View the SourceDaya Krishna, WikipediaIncludes: Daya Krishna, LeadQuote, Includes: Daya Krishna, LeadHe has published works in the fields of Indian philosophy, Western philosophy and aesthetics.View the SourceWikipedia: Michael Tannertier 2WikipediaIncludes: Michael Tanner, Page categories: British philosophers of artView the SourceWikipedia: Valentin Feldmantier 2WikipediaIncludes: Valentin Feldman, Page categories: French philosophers of artView the SourceWikipedia: Per Bauhntier 2WikipediaIncludes: Per Bauhn, LeadQuote, Includes: Per Bauhn, LeadHis main research interests include ethics and political philosophy, but also aesthetics.View the SourceWikipedia: Hans Maestier 2WikipediaIncludes: Hans Maes, LeadQuote, Includes: Hans Maes, LeadHe is known for his work in aesthetics and philosophy of art.View the SourceWikipedia: Stephan Witasektier 2WikipediaIncludes: Stephan Witasek, LeadQuote, Includes: Stephan Witasek, LeadWitasek is noted for developing a theory of aesthetics within the Graz School's abstract object theory.View the SourceParadox of fiction (Wikipedia)Includes: Paradox of Fiction, LeadQuote, Includes: Paradox of Fiction, LeadThe paradox of fiction, or the paradox of emotional response to fiction, is a philosophical dilemma that questions how people can experience strong emotions to fictional things.View the SourceJose Vasconcelos (Wikipedia)tier 2WikipediaIncludes: Jose Vasconcelos, Article textQuote, Includes: Jose Vasconcelos, Article textFinally, between 1931 and 1940, he tried to consolidate his proposals by publishing his main topics organized in three main works: Metafísica ('Metaphysics'), Ética ('Ethics'), and Estética ('Aesthetics').View the SourceWalter Mignolo, WikipediaIncludes: Walter Mignolo, Article textQuote, Includes: Walter Mignolo, Article textRecently, Mignolo has ventured into what he calls "decolonial aesthetics" writing on artists Pedro Lasch, Fred Wilson, and Tanja Ostojić. He contributed to Black Mirror/Espejo Negro, a bookView the SourceWikipedia: Malcolm Buddtier 2WikipediaIncludes: Malcolm Budd, Article textQuote, Includes: Malcolm Budd, Article textHe was best known for his work in analytic aesthetics.View the SourcePeter Kivy - WikipediaIncludes: Peter Kivy, LeadQuote, Includes: Peter Kivy, LeadHis early work was on the 18th-century British aesthetics, primarily Francis Hutcheson.View the SourceWikipedia: Jean Lacostetier 2WikipediaIncludes: Jean Lacoste, LeadQuote, Includes: Jean Lacoste, LeadJean Lacoste’s Philosophy of Art comes in Persian Archived 2015-12-22 at the Wayback MachineView the SourceInternet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Gustav ShpetInternet Encyclopedia of PhilosophyIncludes: Gustav Shpet, Opening summary, aestheticsQuote, Includes: Gustav Shpet, Opening summary, aestheticsAdditionally, he wrote extensively on aesthetics, hermeneutics, the history of Russian philosophy and the philosophy of language.View the SourceStanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Alain LeRoy LockeStanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyIncludes: Alain LeRoy Locke, Introduction, value theory and aestheticsQuote, Includes: Alain LeRoy Locke, Introduction, value theory and aestheticsHe was also a creative and systematic philosopher who developed theories of value, pluralism and cultural relativism that informed and were reinforced by his work on aesthetics.View the SourceComments (0)No comments yet. 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