Without Johann Gottfried Herder (1744-1803), we simply would not understand Shakespeare in the way we do. In fact, much literature and art besides Shakespeare would neither look the same nor be the same without the influence of Herder's "Shakespeare" (1773). One of the most important and original works in the history of literary criticism, this passionate essay pioneered a new, historicist approach to cultural artifacts by arguing that they should be judged not by their conformity to a set of conventions imported from another time and place, but by the effectiveness of their response to their own historical and cultural context. Rejecting the authority of a dominant and stifling French neoclassicism that judged eighteenth-century plays by the criteria of Aristotle, Herder's "Shakespeare" signaled a break with the Enlightenment, the approach of Romanticism, and the arrival of a distinctly modern form of aesthetic appreciation. With a vivid new translation and a fascinating introduction by Gregory Moore, this edition of Herder's classic will speak to today's readers with undiminished power and persuasiveness.

"Only a small fraction of Herder's writings has been translated into English, and such translations are often archaic and/or unreliable. I know of no previous translation of the "Critical Forests," for example, although the first and fourth parts, which appear in the present volume, are of major interest to students of aesthetics. With "Selected Writings on Aesthetics," these and other texts by Herder are now accessible to readers of English, through the pen of a translator who exhibits clarity and elegance of style."--Hugh Barr Nisbet, University of Cambridge

"This much-needed book brings into English a philosopher severely underrepresented in this language, yet of paramount importance to any adequate understanding of the late eighteenth century in Germany and indeed of the rest of Europe."--Robert E. Norton, University of Notre Dame

"This collection provides translations of the most important aesthetic writings of Herder, a crucial, original thinker in the field of aesthetics, an important influence on later German philosophy, and a writer whose significance has also been acknowledged by such recent thinkers as Isaiah Berlin and Charles Taylor. Even advanced scholars sometimes find a translation useful for such a difficult writer, and some of the writings translated here, such as "Critical Forests," are not very easily found even in German."--Michael Inwood, Trinity College, Oxford

"This is a timely translation because Herder's importance is more apparent than ever and his work is undergoing a significant revaluation."--Cyrus Hamlin, Yale University