Aesthetics and Negativity: Reading Mallarmé’s “Victorieusement Fui …”

Abstract

In an article entitled “The End of Aesthetic Experience,”¹ Richard Shusterman gives a brief history of the notion of aesthetic experience as well as a synopsis of recent critiques which have led to the demise of this notion. He concludes not by rejecting or condemning the notion, nor by defending it philosophically, but by suggesting that this notion might still be valuable insofar as it encourages the experience and study of art forms (pp. 39–40). He implies, therefore, that what is generally referred to as an aesthetic experience, say an emotional response to an object of experience, may well be devoid of any philosophical importance but, nevertheless, can serve as a reminder or as a rallying cry for the appreciation of a special type of object, namely an aesthetic object.

Richard Shusterman, “The End of Aesthetic Experience,” The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 55 (1997), 29–41.