Neohelicon
Volume/Issue:
Volume 34: Issue 1
Inventing reception
Genius and judgement in Kant’s critique of judgement
Author:
John Zilcosky University of Toronto German and Comparative Literature 204 Northrop Frye Hall, 73 Queen’s Park Crescent Toronto ON M5S 1K7 Canada 204 Northrop Frye Hall, 73 Queen’s Park Crescent Toronto ON M5S 1K7 Canada

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Pages:
93–99
Online Publication Date:
27 Apr 2007
Publication Date:
27 Jun 2007
Article Category:
Research Article
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11059-007-1009-7
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Abstract  

For centuries theorists tried to mend the Platonic schism between poetry and philosophy. According to modern commentators, Kant met Plato’s challenge by proclaiming the coincidence of beauty and moral law in the aesthetic object. It is true that in his Kritik der Urteilskraft Kant reconciled genius and judgement through the aesthetic idea, which causes analogous processes of mind in the producer and the viewer, but the crux of the conflict between the originality of genius and genius’s accomodation to judgement lies in Kant’s vital disclaimer, “there may also be original nonsense”. Original nonsense implies the existence of “original sense”, i. e. what the genius is supposed to create. Because the work must be exemplary, yet not conceptualizable, this implies an ever-moving and self-destructing avant-garde. The judges of exemplarity are neither critics nor philosophers but new artists who see the genius’ work as examples not to be “imitated” but to be “followed”. Through Kant’s self-propagating genius art evaluates itself. Judges who attempt to “clip (genius’) wings” are destined, because they lack genius, to misapprehend the substance of art. Kant subverts Plato’s hierarchy by positing an artist who can judge himself and approach reason through art. Meanwhile his thoroughly Romantic but also presciently modern plan makes the philosopher write himself out of his own narrative which may, however, inspire a reader to validate Kant’s philosophical text as original and exemplary.

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Cover Neohelicon
Neohelicon
Print ISSN:
0324-4652
Online ISSN:
1588-2810

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Neohelicon
Language English
Size B5
Year of
Foundation		 1973
Volumes
per Year		 1
Issues
per Year		 2
Founder Akadémiai Kiadó
Founder's
Address		 H-1117 Budapest, Hungary 1516 Budapest, PO Box 245.
Publisher Akadémiai Kiadó
Springer Nature Switzerland AG
Publisher's
Address		 H-1117 Budapest, Hungary 1516 Budapest, PO Box 245.
CH-6330 Cham, Switzerland Gewerbestrasse 11.
Responsible
Publisher		 Chief Executive Officer, Akadémiai Kiadó
ISSN 0324-4652 (Print)
ISSN 1588-2810 (Online)

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