1. Humanisme et art.
- Author
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Bejjani, Gérard
- Subjects
- *
HUMANISM , *21ST century art , *ART theory , *VALUES (Ethics) , *LITERARY theory , *MOTION pictures & philosophy , *IDEALS (Philosophy) - Abstract
Humanism and art - To what extent does art have a major role to play in twenty-first-century humanism? Greek philosophers believed that its purpose was ethical, serving to improve people by confronting them with evil and purging their passions. Nineteenth-century literature saw it as edifying and utilitarian, and for two centuries it was associated with the principles of goodness, truth, freedom and resistance to oppression, part of a general movement towards greater human solidarity based on shared experience. Literature and, more recently, cinema have been the most effective at defending human values. But the role of culture is not purely ethical: it also encourages a purely aesthetic reflection that has become the sole truth of creation. The aspiration to beauty reminds us that mankind is no ordinary species, but a reminiscence of the ideal objectified in works of art. The quest for the absolute is that of artists who draw on the lessons of history to come closer to the essence of spirituality and the cosmic centre of the world. Artistic vision is the ultimate vocation of humanity, achieving greatness and dignity in a constant quest for illumination, engaging in dialogue with the transcendent, and perhaps even transcending our own finiteness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2014
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