Art and beauty in medieval aesthetics
Introduction
This book by Umberto Eco is about the compilations made from the 6th to the 18th. This author was also a writer, professor and Italian philosopher who worked at the University. He began studying the law career, which he abandoned for medieval philosophy and literature. Already in 1954, he conducted a thesis on the philosopher Tomás de Aquino, writing, two years later, the aesthetic problem in Santo Tomás.
Throughout his professional life, he published several essays as is open work. In addition, he also collaborated as a columnist in various magazines and newspapers. In 1978, it was the moment in which he wrote his first novel The name of the Rose, a book that had great success to his curiosity adapted in medieval times, so it is the best known.
Due to cancer, Umberto Eco died at the age of 84 in Milan, leaving written in his testament that celebrations were not made in his memory. As for the art and beauty book in medieval aesthetics, he tells us about the birth of the concept of "aesthetics", leaving aside beauty or art in varied theories. It is in the Middle Ages when thoughts and theories about beauty, both natural and artificial, tastes, etc. appear. In summary, this book allows us to know and make us better understand the taste of man about art in medieval, in addition to his mentality.
Developing
In this book, Umberto Eco has made a summary about all theories dedicated to the aesthetics that were carried out in the Middle Ages, which have been explained and summarized in such a way in which the author makes them understand perfectly, even if you do not have hardly any Knowledge about medieval philosophy. In this book, Umberto adapts the aesthetic problems of classical antiquity to the feelings of man, which makes us think that in medieval era there was an anthropocentric thought, that is, that everything revolves around man, which is the center of the world.
It is important to be clear about the meaning of aesthetics and everything that this word entails, since, if not, there would be no way to understand what the book is about. According to Umberto, an aesthetic theory is: “Any discourse that, with some systematic attempt and putting into play philosophical concepts, is occupied with phenomena that concern beauty, art and conditions of production and appreciation of artistic work; to relations between art and other activities, and between art and morals; to the artist’s function; to the notions of pleasant, ornamental, style; to taste judgments, as well as criticism about these judgments and the theories and practices of interpretation of texts, verbal or not, that is, to the hermeneutic issue ”.
Explaining this with my words, what it means is that an aesthetic theory is a philosophical discourse in which concepts such as beauty, art and its appreciation are included, that is, we cannot talk about aesthetics if we do not incorporate before what It is and is not beauty and art itself. We must also keep in mind that the meaning of aesthetics also refers to the relationship between art and morals, that is, the art and behavior that a person or, rather, a human, has about good and evil, what That is good and what is bad, since it is a very variable perspective depending on the person, which is good for me can be bad for another person, and so, on the contrary.
The author makes clear to us in this book that what he intends is not to give us a definition of what the aesthetic word is in the contemporary, but the objective is to give us an image of an era, as well as its problems and solutions. When the aesthetics concept appeared in Europe in the 18. To do this, varied studies on beauty, taste, art, aesthetic pleasure, etc. This makes us see how the novelty, at that time, had more popularity than the existing, ignoring many important things.
Today, this continues to happen, we forget the important thing and then focus on things that are not really worth it and, when we want to realize we remember what is forgotten, it is here when we return to give the value that it really has. I consider it important to talk about aesthetics in the field of music since it can be very variable. In the book it tells us that music is founded on a principle, the proportional principle. This means that human beings react in a different way depending on the pleasure that you have towards that type of music. Explaining this with an example: generally, when we listen to "slow" songs they transmit us relaxation, tranquility, such as classical music, on the contrary, when the human being listens. But this does not always happen, there are whom heavy metal seems to be the most relaxing and reassuring, thus incorporating a new vision and perception of music.
This book takes us a long journey in which many authors give us their theories or opinions about aesthetics, beauty, pleasure, etc., encompassing the crowds facets that aesthetics and their representations can have. There are also many comparisons between what an author thinks, comparing it to the thought of another different author in order to draw new conclusions about what they both think. It is appropriate that many comparisons be made between the ideas that an author has about one thing and the ideas that another completely different author has about the same idea. It is a clear way to see the varied views that there are and that the human being has, that is, the conception we have about the same idea. It does not always have to be different between one author and another, they can also coincide with having the same idea.
Another section that seems convenient and curious to talk about is about the theories of art that had in those moments in those moments. In the book he tells us about ignorance that at that time was towards art theories. At that time, medieval had an art theory based on a classic and intellectualist doctrine of human doing, that is, art is what the human being does or what he has to do, that activity that usually has an end or an objective that must be reached to be able to meet needs.
We also check how medieval aesthetics disguise itself in order to survive in the following centuries. By this I mean that, to maintain an idea or anything else, they must be adapted to the new mentalities or the new times so that they are still in force from the moment they were created to this day. To keep them, in my opinion, they must go through many reforms or evolutions, so call it, so that they can be adapted to the new ideas of today. To do this, you have to make a "trip" from the first idea that was about this thing and the idea that transmits today, and thus make a comparison to be able to draw a conclusion and adapt it until today. This, in turn, takes time and difficult common, if there are.
In the medieval, aesthetics is converted into a norm or law of life. There is no longer a theological tendency of the pleasant, but the pleasant is practiced as an effective way of natural religion. By this I mean that, apart from the fact that we find the aesthetics also in the religious, the point is that the pleasant, which is what is called in the text, is something we do, that we practice, it is like a religion itself that It leaves us, that is why it is called natural religion, because it is something we do, it is not something built by God, but it can be destined for God. In medieval times, natural things could only be modified through miracles. Today, and I believe that at that time, we understand as a miracle a little -expected action of God, something that cannot be explained by natural laws, but there is a clear divine intervention. Nature could be perfected with the help of art, but it could not be modified, that is, God created a nature, but we, as human beings, create new "things" through what already created by God, that is why So what naturally created by God cannot be modified by the human being, but it can be perfected.
conclusion
As for the conclusion made by the book itself, it makes it very clear that throughout the book the intention from the beginning has not been to carry out a recovery of scholastic theories. It has shown us that theories over time have been reused by many contemporary theorists and artists. It is concluded that the update of theories and ideas is very easy, in the sense that it is true, as it says textually in the book "how it is true that in all cultures fire is a symbol of heat". With the latter I think that it refers to the updating a theory or idea is something that does not carry much work. It clarifies that the historical reconstruction of the theories shown by the book are intended to respond to a set of issues that have been done on aesthetic phenomena in the field of metaphysics itself, of the culture itself, of the world’s own vision.
To this I think that it refers to the fact that over time they have been doing or, rather, a set of questions have appeared in which the human being questions everything, in this case, referring to the entire field of aesthetics, which is why the objective of this book has been to answer these questions through a set of authors with different theories and points of view. That is, it is a medieval historical reconstruction of all medieval aesthetics to be able to understand that time more clearly. In conclusion of the conclusion of the book itself, aesthetics has changed, but philosophy is still today fixing the perception of things, its essence.
As for my conclusion, I consider that this book itself is not difficult to read, but it makes you think, reflect and put yourself in the skin of thinkers to be able to understand their theories and views, if this does not reach Doing, I think that the understanding of the book would be much more difficult and more durable. As for the book, I found it very appropriate and interesting to read, and more in this subject. The most curious thing is how the author, Umberto Eco, makes us a tour through each and every one of the theories given by the different authors and/or philosophers. The way in which the author has to explain these theories in an easier or more accessible way facilitates us much more understanding and, most importantly, he has transferred us to medieval times, as if we were there, living what at that time at that time it was happening. Without a doubt, I would recommend the book, especially those people who like philosophy and, in turn, the Middle Ages.
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