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This book explores the place of art in the modern world, but
instead of asking what art is, it begins with the question of art's
appeal in modernity. Why is the appellation 'art' so desired for
movies, food, and fashion, for example? Why is there the assumption
of esteem when someone calls themselves an 'artist'? On the other
hand, why is modern art so often seen as, at best, difficult and,
at worst, not, in fact, art? Engaging with a broad range of theory,
the author draws on the thought of Max Weber to offer an account of
art's widespread appeal in terms of its constituting a
self-contained value-sphere of meaning, which provides a feeling of
tremendous salvation from the senseless routines of modern life. In
this way, major theories on aesthetics in philosophy and sociology
- including those of Kant, Hegel, Adorno and Bourdieu - are
critically recast and incorporated into an overall explanation, and
fundamental questions concerning the relation of art to politics
and ethics are given innovative answers. A fresh examination of the
development of the aesthetic sphere that shows how art came to be
regarded as one of the last bastions of freedom and the highest
human achievement, and, also, how it became increasingly isolated
from the rest of society, The Appeal of Art in Modernity will
appeal to scholars of philosophy, social theory, and sociology with
interests in art, modernity, and Weber.
This book explores the place of art in the modern world, but
instead of asking what art is, it begins with the question of art's
appeal in modernity. Why is the appellation 'art' so desired for
movies, food, and fashion, for example? Why is there the assumption
of esteem when someone calls themselves an 'artist'? On the other
hand, why is modern art so often seen as, at best, difficult and,
at worst, not, in fact, art? Engaging with a broad range of theory,
the author draws on the thought of Max Weber to offer an account of
art's widespread appeal in terms of its constituting a
self-contained value-sphere of meaning, which provides a feeling of
tremendous salvation from the senseless routines of modern life. In
this way, major theories on aesthetics in philosophy and sociology
- including those of Kant, Hegel, Adorno and Bourdieu - are
critically recast and incorporated into an overall explanation, and
fundamental questions concerning the relation of art to politics
and ethics are given innovative answers. A fresh examination of the
development of the aesthetic sphere that shows how art came to be
regarded as one of the last bastions of freedom and the highest
human achievement, and, also, how it became increasingly isolated
from the rest of society, The Appeal of Art in Modernity will
appeal to scholars of philosophy, social theory, and sociology with
interests in art, modernity, and Weber.
This book illuminates an important dimension of the work of Max
Weber. Weber's theory of meaning and modernity is articulated
through an understanding of his account of the way in which the
pursuit of meaning in the modern world has been shaped by the loss
of Western religion and how such pursuit gives sense to the
phenomena of human suffering and death. Through a close, scholarly
reading of Weber's extensive writings and Vocation Lectures, the
author explores the concepts of 'paradox' and 'brotherliness' as
found in Weber's work, in order to offer an original exposition of
Weber's actual theory of how meaning and meaninglessness work in
the modern world. In addition to making a substantial and highly
original contribution to the sociology of modernity, the book
applies the theory of meaning extracted from Weber's thought,
addressing the claim that Weber's work has been rendered out-dated
by the supposed re-enchantment of the modern world, as well as
discussing the ways this theory can contribute to our understanding
of the development of specific forms of modernity. A rigorous
examination of the thought of one of the most important figures in
classical sociology, this volume will appeal to scholars of
sociology, social theory and philosophy with interests in
modernity, Weber and the concept of meaning.
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