Arguing about Art: Topics In Contemporary Philosophical Debates

by Alex Neill, Aaron Ridley

Arguing About Art is an anthology which covers twelve topics or debates in the philosophy of art. Each chapter contains two or more articles on the topic, preceded by a short introduction to the topic and followed by a select bibliography. The book is ideal for engaging students in the controversies and puzzles that make the field of aesthetics so interesting. Some of the topics have only recently emerged (such as colorizing movies, or feminist aesthetics); others have been debated for centuries (such as the pleasures of tragedy or the relationship of art and truth). A wide range of art forms (music, photography, fiction, etc.) are covered, as is the topic of appreciating nature. While the book has ample material to stand-alone, its low price makes it attractive as a supplement to most anthologies that take an historical approach to aesthetics (such as Neill & Ridley's The Philosophy of Art). The two books combined allow for a course that balances the historical approach with a problems-based or topical approach to the philosophy of art.

Genres: Art, Philosophy, Nonfiction, Reference

Paperback

First published January 1, 1995

Reviews

[Sara DeSantis (Hot Reads Librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book! I love the set up of this because it gives some general background on an aesthetic topic then presents two articles on the topic which different views. Pretty dense so this is not a light read.

[Brittany Sanford · Rating 3 out of 5]

So yes, lets argue about art...

Interesting, and as I sat in class my classmates argued about art, it gave me headaches, but I was at least happy that I didn't need to argue. I already knew the truth. Art is simple, complex, and everything.

(Food for thought with serious headaches)
*good*

[Brendon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seeems a bit sophist at points.

[нєνєℓ ¢ανα · Rating 4 out of 5]

Phenomenal, so inspiring, well informed, transformational, social relevance, memorable, expressive, spark emotion, climacteric...

[Michael Mingo · Rating 4 out of 5]

A few of these "arguments" felt underwhelming (I'm thinking the rock music and morality discussions), but on the whole I found this collection stimulating -- it got me to think about seemingly simple notions like authenticity and publicity in a critical light. I'd never give much thought to aesthetics before (philosophically speaking), but now I want to start immersing myself in these topics.

[Valerie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a refreshingly stimulating book, if you are a snob like me. I appreciated the variety of essays on food, bad art, emo music, and forgeries... even though some of the essays were taxing, it was intersting. Very interestink.

[LemontreeLime · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had hoped for a good textbook on art critiquing, and a development of what makes art art. Alas, it was unreadable.