Abstract

This book is a detailed examination of Thomistic objectivist aesthetics in the context of a criticism of contemporary subjective theories. The thesis of the book is developed logically with many, and often detailed, references to the history of aesthetics. There are numerous useful footnotes and a large bibliography and index. In the context of his realist position, Kovach seeks "... the ultimate principles or causes of the beauty of things" which he argues entail the "... extramental, objective reality of beauty." His thesis rests on empirical fact; "... while seeing and/or hearing certain objects, some people experience delight" and the beauty "in" the things causes this delight. After discussing problems of causality, Kovach defends the argument that beauty is similar to other physical qualities which the realist believes are in necessary cause-and-effect relationships. This involves him in a criticism of subjectivism and relativism. He does this by means of a thorough description and treatment of thirty-six reasons for aesthetic disagreement. I would agree that relationism is a form of objectivism but not, as he claims, "ill-disguised." Aesthetic perception may be a way of perceiving things that have the required components to elicit this response. Such a relation might be described phenomenologically. Beauty for Kovach is explained cosmologically; we reach an understanding of absolutely universal beauty by determining the essence of material beauty through progressively complex instances. His defense is interesting. For example, he diagrams the most plausible divisions of beauty from the history of aesthetics and argues that all things in creation participate in beauty by a clever examination of theories of ugliness.—P.S.