Approaching the issue of responsibility from a perspective outside the traditional debate between free will and determinism, Raffoul (Louisiana State Univ.) provides a rich genealogy of concepts of responsibility from thinkers in the Continental tradition. In eight chapters, this clearly argued book begins with Aristotle and moves historically to its conclusion with Derrida, encountering Kant, Nietzsche, Sartre, Levinas, and Heidegger along the way.
Philosophy of the Arts - An Introduction to Aesthetics
Philosophy of the Arts presents a comprehensive and accessible introduction to those coming to aesthetics and the philosophy of art for the first time. The third edition is greatly enhanced by new sections on art and beauty, modern art, Aristotle and katharsis, and Hegel. Each chapter has been thoroughly revised with fresh material and extended discussions.
Aristotle as Poet - The Song for Hermias and Its Contexts
Aristotle is known as a philosopher and as a theorist of poetry, but he was also a composer of songs and verse. This is the first comprehensive study of Aristotle's poetic activity, interpreting his remaining fragments in relation to the earlier poetic tradition and to the literary culture of his time. Its centerpiece is a study of the single complete ode to survive, a song commemorating Hermias of Atarneus, Aristotle's father-in-law and patron in the 340's BCE. This remarkable text is said to have embroiled the philosopher in charges of impiety and so is studied both from a literary perspective and in its political and religious contexts.
For more than a millennium, Aristotle was regarded as the foremost authority in the western world in nearly every subject. His corpus spans a daunting array of subjects and he made significant contributions to every known field of inquiry in the ancient world. Every student of philosophy will encounter his work and ideas in any number of areas of philosophy. In Aristotle: A Guide for the Perplexed, John Vella explores the historical, philosophical and political context in which Aristotle's theories evolved.
Shakespeare and Cognition - Aristotle's Legacy and Shakespearean Drama: Webbing the Invisible
Shakespeare and Cognition examines the essential relationship between vision, knowledge, and memory in Renaissance models of cognition as seen in Shakespeare's plays. Drawing on both Aristotle's Metaphysics and contemporary cognitive literary theory, Arthur F. Kinney explores five key objects/images in Shakespeare's plays -- crowns, bells, rings, graves, and ghosts -- that are not actually seen (or, in the case of the latter, not meant to be seen), but are central to the imaginations of both the playwright and the playgoers.
