Reflections on art

The twenty-six essays which compose this volume bring together some of the finest contemporary contributions to art criticism and the philosophy of aesthetics. Some of the selections deal with such philosophical considerations as the aesthetic problem of distance and the nature of dramatic illusion; other essays discuss specific art forms such as sculpture, music, dance, motion pictures, architecture, and poetry. Many of the essays chosen by Miss Langer have previously been available only in their French or German originals; all of the selections contribute to the clarification of older ideas and they propound new insights in that difficult realm of the philosophy of art. Although each essay is a self-contained entity, the various selections unite to form a well-coordinated and authoritative statement of the expressiveness, quality, and inter-relation of contemporary art forms--back cover.

Beyond its central premise, the book can be read through the connected lenses of Philosophy. Those themes offer useful points of attention as the characters, ideas, or world develop, especially where the book complicates the expectations of its primary category.