Reason in Art
The Life of Reason

Spanish born George Santayana (1863-1952), philosopher, literary critic, poet and novelist was one of the leading American thinkers of his time. Reason in Art along with The Sense of Beauty are his works in the field of aesthetics. His writing style is elegant and erudite and requires careful readin......more

This book starts with the assertion that art is something that humanizes and rationalizes objects and that puts the world into a context that we can understand. Oh come on. I guess I should have taken a clue from the title that this would be the direction of the argument. Some art can do that, but t......more

Art is born from the need to humanize and rationalize objects, an attempt to better the conditions of existence. But at the same time, art is hopelessly fickle, inward-focused, and has no concern whatsoever in improving the outside world. And yet what those scornful miss about art is that it can pos......more

Santayana advoctes an aesthetic of utility in social order. He is conservative and occasionally dismissive according to his own cultvated taste. His aesthetics may be compared to Plato or the smug though clever doctrine of Chesterton.......more

Not what I expected but still a decent philosophical read on why art matters.......more