Filozofija i drustvo 2015 Volume 26, Issue 3, Pages: 629-651
https://doi.org/10.2298/FID1503629N
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Ancient or modern? Alexander G. Baumgarten and the coming of age of aesthetics
Nannini Alessandro (Faenza, Italia)
The aim of this essay is to examine Baumgarten’s conception on the history of
aesthetics and on his role in it. In the first part, I analyze the way in
which Baumgarten’s aesthetic innovation has been perceived by two of his
disciples, namely Georg Conrad Winckelmann and Georg Andreas Will. While the
former puts the emphasis on the modernity of aesthetics, Will seems more
inclined to attribute the birth of aesthetics to ancient philosophers.
Despite this apparent disagreement, my thesis is that the basic positions of
the two authors are very similar and find their rationale in Baumgarten’s
peculiar treatment of the issue. Consequently, I set out to inquire into
Baumgarten’s theory, in the attempt to better understand his reconstruction
of the empirical history of aesthetics. My purpose is to see how this
empirical history is framed within a more systematic history which
establishes its guidelines and marks its turning points. Eventually, I take
into account the possible implications of this position with regard to the
question of the origin of aesthetics.
Keywords: Alexander G. Baumgarten, origin of aesthetics, history of aesthetics, 18th century aesthetics, German aesthetics, German Enlightenment, Enlightenment aesthetics, Georg A. Will, Georg C. Winckelmann