Philosophical Perspective of Art

Plato’s Theory of Mimesis

In his theory of mimesis, Plato says that all art is mimetic by nature; art is an imitation of
life. He believed that ‘idea’ is ultimate reality. Art imitates idea and so it is imitation of
reality. He gives an example of a carpenter and a chair. The idea of ‘chair’ first came in
the mind of carpenter. He gave physical shape to his idea and created a chair. The
painter imitated the chair of the carpenter in his picture of chair. Thus, painter’s chair is
twice removed from reality. Hence, he believed that art is twice removed from reality. He
gives first importance to philosophy as philosophy deals with idea. Whereas poetry
deals with illusion – things which are twice removed from reality. So to Plato, philosophy
is better than poetry. This view of mimesis is pretty deflationary, for it implies that
mimetic art—drama, fiction, representational painting—does not itself have an important
role to play in increasing our understanding of human beings and the human world. This
implication would not be rejected by every lover—or indeed every creator—of
imaginative literature. Ironically it was Plato’s most famous student, Aristotle, who was
the first theorist to defend literature and poetry in his writing Poetics against Plato’s
objection and his theory of mimesis.

Art as Representation

Aristotle, Plato's most important student in philosophy, agreed with his teacher that art is a
form of imitation. However, in contrast to the disgust that his master holds for art, Aristotle
considered art as an aid to philosophy in revealing truth. The kind of imitation that art
does is not antithetical to the reaching of fundamental truths in the world. Talking about
tragedies for example, Aristotle in the Poetics claimed that poetry is a literary
representation in general. Akin to other artforms, poetry only admits of an attempt to
represent what things might be. For Aristotle, all kinds of art including poetry, music,
dance, painting, and sculpture do not aim to represent reality as it is.
Aristotle (384-322 BC) was more systematic and down to earth. All the arts have their
own techniques and rational principles, and it is through mastery of these that the
artist/craftsman brings his conceptions to life. Yes, the arts do copy nature, but their
representations are fuller and more meaningful than nature gives us in the raw. That is
their strength. We do not therefore need to insist on some moral purpose for art, which
is thus free to represent all manner of things present, past, imagined or institutionally-
required. Correctness in poetry is not correctness judged on other grounds like politics
or morality. The artist's task is to create some possible world which the audience will
grasp and evaluate much as they do the "real" world outside. The artwork needs to be
internally consistent, and externally acceptable. {3}

Form and content cannot be entirely separated. Plays should have a beginning, middle
and end because life itself has these features, but they should also possess a larger
significance that endows the individual representation with deeper human meaning.
Where Plato castigated poetry for bewitching the senses, Aristotle praises it for
catharsis and healthy psychological balance. Both in its creation and reception, art is
mode of understanding, and so a civilizing influence.

What Is Art For Arts’ Sake By Kant?

The Critique of Judgement (1790). Immanuel Kant, a German philosopher, qualified “art
for art’s sake” as a way to approach art. In his view, art is intended to be “purposeless”,
meaning that it does not contain content, subject matter, or any other external demands.

Is Art For Art Sake Or Life Sake?

However, their investigations of color and light were meant to be art for the sake of art,
and they served as a new way to see the world through their investigations. In the
context of “Art for Life’s Sake,” it is usually thought that people and the world need
inspiration beyond their daily routines.
Who Defined Literature As An Art For Art’S Sake?

In an 1802 diary entry, Swiss writer Benjamin Constant is believed to have been the first
person to use the phrase “art for art’s sake.”. Victor Cousin, a French philosopher who
publicized the term in his lectures from 1817-18, is often credited with its origin.

What Is The Meaning Of Art’S Sake?

It means that the beauty of the fine arts is reason enough for pursuing them – that art
does not have to serve political, religious, economic, or other purposes.

How Do You Understand Art For Art’S Sake?

The term “l’art pour l’art,” (Art for Art’s Sake) is derived from the French, which means
“art has an inherent value regardless of its subject matter, political or ethical
significance.”.

What was the purpose of art in the modern period? In the minds of late eighteenth
century and early nineteenth century philosophers, the role of art could be nothing less
than to create beauty. The beautiful, for Emmanuel Kant (1724-1804), is “that which
without any concept is cognized as the object of necessary satisfaction.” In other
words, the appropriate stance of the spectator, perceiving “beauty” is one of
indifference. This indifference does not imply, as it would in the contemporary sense
today, that one is uninvolved; it simply means acknowledging that the beauty possessed
by the object is necessary and that the agreement as to the beauty would be universal.
Paradoxically, taste is always ordered upon the indifferent, but this indifference is also
the key to the recognition of the universality of beauty. The status of aesthetic judgment
is not empirical but logical, based upon the powers of human reason and rationality,
which excludes internal and external purposiveness or “interest.” Kant introduces
purposiveness without a purpose, allowing the mind of the one who contemplates art
freely thanks to an unrestricted play of the mental faculties. But what, then was the role
of the artist, who was supposed to provide this play of the mental faculties?

References:
https://www.thefreshreads.com/platos-theory-of-mimesis/

www.textetc.com/theory/faithful-representation.html

blacktailnyc.com/what-is-art-of-arts-sake/

https://arthistoryunstuffed.com/kant-art-for-arts-sake/