Rethinking Comparative Aesthetics in a Contemporary Frame

Details : 

Author : Ed: R.N Misra and Parul Dave- Mukherji 
Publisher ‏ : ‎ INDIAN INSTITUTE OF ADVANCE STUDY; 2019th edition (January 1, 2019)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 95 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9382396683
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-9382396680
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 650 g

About the Book

This volume revisits comparative aesthetics by taking a broad view of aesthetic concerns across disciplines like art history, literary studies, philosophy and linguistics, bringing forth the questions of class, caste, and religion too. Questions of translation and methodological concerns to update aesthetics in contemporary times are at the forefront. The contributors revisit Indian aesthetics from the contemporary lens of politics of aesthetics and aesthetics of politics. It also addresses the intercultural framework of comparative aesthetics that juxtaposes larger cultural entities like the Indian, the Chinese and the Western around some key terms of aesthetics like originality, creativity, beauty, mimesis and resonance. While it highlights the methodological challenges that comparative aesthetics faces in the wake of globalization that has thrown up new disciplines of study, it also signals certain unevenness that exists in the field. While dealing with new interpretative lenses to understand terminology of aesthetics, it also draws attention to new primary texts that were less explored or were there in fragments and therefore overlooked. Finally, it attempts to update comparative aesthetics through new interdisciplinary conversations that throw light on crucial aspects of Indian aesthetics today.

About the Author

Professor R.N. Misra taught at the Universities of Saugor, Gwalior and Allahabad (1959-2001) and was also a Fellow at the IIAS (1973-75; 2002-2005) and Tagore National Fellow (2012-15). His published works relate to pre-modern Indian art, specially Yaksha cult and iconography, ancient artists, silpa tradition, regional sculptures, and Saiva ascetics in piety and power. Professor Parul Dave-Mukherji teaches at the Department of Visual Studies, School of Arts and Aesthetics, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. She holds a PhD from Oxford University and has held fellowships at the Clark Art Institute, Williamstown, USA; South Asia Institute, Heidelberg, Germany; British Academy fellowship, Goldsmiths' College, London; Kunst Historische Institute, Florence. Her published works concern silpasastras, classical Sanskrit aesthetics, comparative aesthetics and global art history.